Ridiculous increase in council tax for police funding

[NigelGresley]

Last year the increase on our council tax bill for the police was 12%, this year it has increased by 22% !!!

I am furious with the government for cutting central funding and transferring the burden to local people. But at the same time wondering whether our police force is really cutting its cloth accordingly.

Anyone else seen such huge increases?
How much longer can this continue? Some people are really going to struggle to pay.

Police officers do not get a free pension on retirement. DH contributes 15% of his pay towards his pension.
Our force is stretched to the limit and I can guarantee that if there are 3 cars at an incident, then 3 cars are required.
Many officers are tied up dealing with the lack of resources in mental health services often leaving victims of crime on the back burner.
All council services have a shortfall and the money has to come from somewhere.

YABU

I am furious with the government for cutting central funding and transferring the burden to local people. But at the same time wondering whether our police force is really cutting its cloth accordingly

That’s exactly what central government wants you to think.

But think about it - we’ve had 8-9 years of hard cuts. What do you expect?

The vast, vast bulk of income tax is paid by the highest earners

However we have regressive taxes like VAT which mean that those on lower incomes will pay, as a proportion, more of their income in tax.

iggly
However we have regressive taxes like VAT which mean that those on lower incomes will pay, as a proportion, more of their income in tax.
Which is why a Land Value tax would take the pressure off other taxes.
VAT is commonly used because its one of the most efficient to collect.

Fuzzy
I am paying through the NOSE for my
Own pension. The job will have killed me by then anyway. I got shot at last year. If someone does t get me the shifts will, or the lack of food, or having to hang I. To use the loo for hours and hours, or the cold when stood on a scene for 10 hours through the night I'm sure of of them will off me before I reap those huge rewards

Or the stress....that's the biggie. And suicide rates .

I pay for my pension. Am aghast at some of the outmoded assumptions.

And My wages have not afforded me my own house. I'm 47 now so unlikely.

Starting wage now for a newly recruited pc is 19k
Many aren't even opting into the pension as they can't afford it each month.

From Moneywise...
Typical retirement income:
"A 30 year old police officer on a salary of £30,000 will receive a pension of around £28,000 if he retires at age 60. If he takes the maximum tax free cash at retirement - £120,000 - this will reduce his annual pension to £18,000."

I'm not saying it is an easy job, or a stressless one but in terms of pensions (which ios what we are discussing) it falls into Moneywise's Top 10.

From where I stand (in my early 60s on a private pension of around £6,000pa having paid in whenever I was entitled to) it doesn't look too bad at all!

In recent years over 20% of annual Police revenue has gone into pensions.

But at the same time wondering whether our police force is really cutting its cloth accordingly.

On reflection I think this was a bit if a dumb ass comment said in the heat of the moment, and was unfair given that I actually know very little about how police forces are currently using their funding. So apologies if this seems to have turned into a police bashing thread as that is absolutely not what was intended.

Having said that I still think it’s right to ask these questions and to expect some kind of explanation for such a dramatic increase.

ShatnersWig
Because you’re obsession with the exact figures is not relevant to the point I’m making. Plus I don’t have access to my bill right now.

YANBU for being furious at the government whose policies have led to massive cuts, which are also unequal across boroughs/councils, as more affluent areas will be able to afford services others won't. But giving money to support the police is a reasonable thing to do, and we also have a higher bill for similar reasons. Of course there is also the Brexit farce which has added to the continuance of austerity and affected the economy. So write to your MP about funding cuts.

YABU. My CT has gone up by £200 overall but I am more than happy that £50-£60 of that will help fund 75 more police officers in my area.

No one is denying that a police pension is a good one but, as I said previously, my DH pays 15% of his salary in contributions. The government made changes to the shortfall funding, forcing more of the liability on the local councils. The money has to come from somewhere and unfortunately the burden is passed via council tax. Blame the government.

It's annoying when the government apparently has funds when they need to persuade the DUP to prop them up or try persuade Labour MPs to back them over brexit by offering funding for their constituencies but seeing as money is only available when it suits them, yes, we do need to provide extra funding through council tax. The whole taxation system does need reviewing though - not sure how efficient it is.

I'm a serving police sergeant in one of the roughest areas of Manchester. Yesterday I had more handover prisoners and mental health hospital watches to allocate than I did police officers. There were still emergency jobs coming in on a regular basis. At one point I had an incident coming in where there was a violent domestic in the street, and not one single person to send to it. My PCs were supposed to be finishing at 11 each night. Not one of them got away before 2.30am. None of them got anything to eat all shift, and I ended up running crappy food out to them all at jobs. They are literally at breaking point, as am I. I don't say that lightly or for dramatic effect. The police have nothing more to give.
Oh, and I could get a second mortgage with what I'm paying into my pension each month, if I ever make it that far. And yet I cried last week when I lost a £10 note as my wage barely covers my bills.

If the increases continue at this rate then in a couple of years I’ll be paying over £2000 and I only live in a poxy little house!

We're already paying £1,900 on our poxy little house. We haven't got our bill yet, but we'll be paying an extra £17 a month or so - a 9.95% increase. And before the increase, we had the 6th highest council tax in the country.

I don't know how much the police increase is but, iirc, it's a relatively small percentage of the total bill. I think the biggest rise will be the county council. The social care and education budgets are under huge pressure and they've made big cuts to things like libraries.

A lot of people where I work have lost their jobs, because the project I work on was cut. It's funded by the county council ...

just been watching the TV programme about homeless people in manchester. I take my hat off to you 10story i couldnt do your job. Much as i agree with a low taxation economy, i do think something has now got to be done about policing/mental health/sorting out youngsters who are going off the rails. even if that means a bit more tax

@10storeylovesong this is the same story all over the UK. People don't understand the strains and stresses of today's policing and would be horrified at what incidents go unresourced, that's a whole other thread. You all do fantastic work.

Every service is stretched and it has a knock on effect, which all rolls downhill to the police. Not enough social workers to check on the welfare of a family - send the police. No ambulances - send the police. No mental health services - send the police. No youth centres - send the police to the resulting ASB. The majority of police officers joined the job to solve crime and help people. We all now accept that we don't do that and we provide a terrible service, but we are barely keeping the wheel on. Can you imagine how disheartening that it every day? Combine that with people who want us to step up and do something, but don't want to pay for it. I honestly don't think there will be a police service in 10-15 years time. It can't carry on as it it is, and it'll be privatised. We all know how well that worked for the railways.

fuzzy
All the above is EXACTLY why I want current revenue to go on current policing, not paying off people who haven't been in the job for donkey's years.
Life's not like that.
Police officers and forces NCOs deserve their pensions far more than most pen pushers
as many of them are physically broken by the time they retire

do you begrudge them the pensions they have paid into ?

Because you’re obsession with the exact figures is not relevant to the point I’m making

Um, you titled this thread "Ridiculous increase in council tax for police funding". This is AIBU. How are we supposed to tell if you are being unreasonable or that the increase is, indeed, ridiculous, if you won't share it with us?

Why is the anger always directed at the police and not at the people committing the crime?
The criminals are the ones committing crime thus placing a demand on overstretched resources and putting your bills up, so direct your ire towards them. Oh and by the way the police percentage of council tax is actually tiny in comparison to what the council take. Yes YABU.

All the above is EXACTLY why I want current revenue to go on current policing, not paying off people who haven't been in the job for donkey's years
So where is the shortfall going to come from as the Government has passed the buck to the council.