Sussex Police will lose 500 police officers as a result of the Government’s cuts to Police Funding.

In addition, a House of Commons Library analysis of Government funding for the police shows that Sussex Police faces cuts of £28.6m in real terms over the next two years alone.

In 2011/11, funding will be cut by 7.5 per cent in real terms or £13.7m and in 2012/13, funding will be cut by 8.7 per cent in real terms or £14.9m.

Over the four years of the government’s Spending Review police forces will see their funding cut by around 20 per cent in real terms.

Brighton & Hove Labour Lead, Councillor Warren Morgan, said:

“David Cameron, speaking on the Andrew Marr programme the week before the General Election said: ‘If ministers come to me with cuts in frontline services, they will be sent away’. Now we see the reality of front-line cuts by the Tory-led Government, who are failing to protect policing and the fight against crime and anti-social behaviour.

“By imposing cuts of this speed and scale the government has put Sussex Police in an impossible position. The Tory Home Secretary has repeatedly ignored warnings that this could mean around 28,000 fewer police officers across the country. Now, whilst bankers’ multi-million pound bonuses go unchecked by David Cameron, a government-commissioned report recommends freezing police bonuses. They have got their priorities wrong.

“These are reckless cuts to our police service which will hit Brighton & Hove hard. They will undermine all the progress we have made to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour in our local neighbourhoods and communities.”