𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Shabana Mahmood’s radical policing plans will result in fewer officers and make the crime crisis worse, Chris Philp declared.

The Home Secretary on Monday confirmed she wants to drastically reduce the number of forces in England and Wales.

And Shadow Home Secretary Mr Philp warned “999 response times and crime investigations will suffer as a result” of Ms Mahmood’s reforms.

The Home Secretary dismissed this criticism, insisting that Labour is ringfencing the number of officers in neighbourhood policing roles to tackle an “epidemic of everyday crime”.

And Ms Mahmood vowed to take “national responsibilities” from local forces, with a new National Police Service set to lead terrorist and serious and organised crime investigations. Local Policing Areas, meanwhile, will “deliver the majority of the policing the public see”.

These will be armed with more resources, the Home Secretary insisted, with the Government ordering Chief Constables to move officers out of back-office roles.

Some chiefs are already said to be against the proposals, Ms Mahmood was told, amid fears towns grouped in with larger cities or areas could “lose out” on busy Friday or Saturday nights.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “We have a crime crisis today.

“Shoplifting and phone theft are both surging upwards under this Government – shoplifting is now the highest ever.

“Shops are being looted on a daily basis. Knife crime in London is up 80% under Mayor Sadiq Khan.

“And women are being let down by Labour too. Sex crimes up 9%, rape up 6%, stalking up 5% and harassment up 6% under this Labour Government.

“This requires action today – not in 2034. Structural reorganisation that will take almost ten years is not an acceptable substitute for action now.

“The hard facts are this: police numbers are falling on her watch, and 999 response times and crime investigations will suffer as a result. Crimes like shoplifting, phone snatching and sex offences are surging under this Government.

“And Regional mega forces will make things worse not better.”

Tory MP Gregory Stafford said: “Following discussions I’ve had with the Chief Constables of both Surrey and Hampshire, who are against these proposals, if Chief Constables across the country, like those in Surrey and Hampshire, are against her proposals, will she scrap this proposal?”

Ms Mahmood vowed to press ahead with plans, though a review, which is expected to be published by the Summer, will set out the precise structures of the mega forces.

The first mergers are expected to happen within the next three years, it is understood.

And all of the new forces will be set up in the next eight years, officials believe.

Home Secretary Ms Mahmood wants to “crack on”, sources believe, as it could save millions of pounds for taxpayers, which can be reinvested in the “frontline”.

She told MPs: “These are, without question, major reforms.

“A transformation in the structures of our forces, the standards within them and the means by which they are held to account by the public, these are the most significant changes to how policing works in this country in around 200 years.

“The world has changed immeasurably since then, but policing has not.

“We have excellent and brave police officers across the country, we have effective and inspiring leaders across many of our forces, but they are operating within a structure that is outdated, making the job of policing our streets and protecting our country harder than it should be.”

The Home Secretary said policing is “happening in the wrong places”, adding “We have local forces responsible for national policing distracting them from policing their communities.”

She added: “At the same time, we have forces of various shapes and sizes with quality varying widely, force by force.

“This Government’s reforms will ensure we have the right policing happening in the right place.”

Sir Andy Marsh, the head of the College of Policing, denied this would be the death of the neighbourhood beat bobby epitomised by Dixon of Dock Green, adding: “He or she is reincarnated into 2025 policing.”

Matt Jukes, deputy commissioner of the Met, said: “The difference for Dixon of Dock Green after these reforms is that in his or her hand will be officer-controlled facial recognition technology and AI leading them to prioritise the work in their area.”

Home Office documents also revealed victims will be forced to speak to AI chatbots, which will then prioritise which crimes need to be dealt with first.

The Home Office said: “Home Office and policing are delivering pilots of a new Portal where victims can exchange secure, 2-way messages with the officer in command of their investigation, delivering a personalised response pathway which alleviates the need to call the police for case updates.

“We are also piloting the use of AI-assisted operator services in force control rooms to support callers in receiving the correct support more rapidly, call handlers in completing administrative tasks and identifying risks and supporting interventions in real-time.

“A handful of local forces have recently introduced AI chatbots, which create efficiencies in triaging non-urgent online queries into policing.

“The proposed reforms to policing and creation of Police.AI will support local innovations of this kind to be scaled nationally if they prove successful.”