Third of neighbourhood police officers have been axed in England and Wales over the past three years as violent crime rises
More than 7,000 neighbourhood police officers have left the force or been assigned to other duties since March 2015
A THIRD of bobbies on the beat were axed across England and Wales as violent crime surged over the past three years, it was reported last night.
More than 7,000 neighbourhood police officers have left the force or been assigned to other duties since March 2015, according to The Sunday Times.
The number of police community support officers has also reportedly fallen by 18% to just over 10,000 during the same period.
Cardboard cutout police officers have been used to provide a “visible deterrent” by frustrated councillors in North Yorkshire.
Villagers in Somerset hired a security firm to patrol at night due to the lack of a police presence.
Violent crimes in England and Wales nearly doubled from 778,000 to 1.4million from 2015 to the year ending March 2018.
Former Scotland Yard commissioner Lord Stevens said the figures were “incredibly alarming”
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He added: “If the increase in violent crime carries on escalating, you are going to get a very dangerous tipping point where there is no control.”
The Home Office said: “Decisions about frontline policing, and how resources are best deployed, are for chief constables and democratically accountable police and crime commissioners.”