Councillor Atkinson to move:
Since 2015, Devon & Cornwall Police and Dorset Police (DC&D) have been working together through a 'Strategic Alliance'. Operational police departments such as Operations, Roads Policing and Prevention as well as 17 other business areas are already operating across the three counties with a further 11 departments currently going through changes which will see them aligned.
The Chief Constables of DC&D Police recently announced their intention to explore a voluntary merger of the two forces. There are no recent examples of successful voluntary mergers of police forces.
Work is now underway to develop a business case for the merger for submission to the Home Office in October 2018, with a decision expected in January 2019.
· The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) commenced a public engagement programme across the three counties in August which ended on 28th August, the full business case was not to be shared with stakeholders or the PCP before the end of this consultation.
· It is understood that at a PCP meeting on 5th October some of the business case may be shared with the PCP before its submission to the Home Office.
· Devon County Council (DCC) had not formally been consulted and this has not been discussed at Cabinet or Scrutiny Committee
The proposed merger will impact funding and on Council Tax across Devon. A much higher proportion of Devon and Cornwall’s total funding (61.5%) comes from government. Only 53% of Dorset’s funding comes from government and a higher proportion comes from the police precept element.
Overall, government funding is more per head for Devon and Cornwall (£103) than Dorset (£85). This would fall to £97.6 per head for a combined force.
Having received minimal information regarding the financial impact or benefits of the potential merger, it is difficult to know whether current levels of funding, alongside the substantial reserves held by both forces, would prove sufficient to underwrite any additional costs arising from the merger of the force areas. This is particularly relevant in attempting to understand how the additional 430 police officers or staff would be funded as a result of the merger. At the moment, tax payers in Dorset in an average Band D property pay around £18 a year more for their policing than householders in Devon and Cornwall.
Legally, the levels of police precept for both areas must be harmonised for the merger to take place. Will Dorset rates be harmonised down to the Devon and Cornwall level? This seems to have been ruled out. Another proposal is that the rate for Devon and Cornwall will be increased to the Dorset level to fund extra police officers. The estimated increase would mean an extra payment of £1-3 per month (£18 per year) for average Band D residents in Devon and Cornwall.
This motion proposes that
· Council writes to the PCC to request that the full business case is sent to DCC for its comments before any proposal is submitted to the Home Secretary
· that the Council discusses at Cabinet and Scrutiny the merger proposals and writes to the Home secretary with its views on the costs and benefits of this merger and requests this is taken into account before any final decision is made.
Minutes:
Councillor Atkinson MOVED and Councillor Hannaford SECONDED that in accordance with Standing Order 6(6), the Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Atkinson be considered at this meeting.
The Motion was put to the vote and declared LOST.
Councillor Atkinson then MOVED and Councillor Hannaford SECONDED, as amended below and with the consent of the Council.
Since 2015, Devon & Cornwall Police and Dorset Police (DC&D) have been working together through a 'Strategic Alliance'. Operational police departments such as Operations, Roads Policing and Prevention as well as 17 other business areas are already operating across the three counties with a further 11 departments currently going through changes which will see them aligned.
The Chief Constables of DC&D Police recently announced their intention to explore a voluntary merger of the two forces. There are no recent examples of successful voluntary mergers of police forces.
Work is now underway to develop a business case for the merger for submission to the Home Office in October 2018, with a decision expected in January 2019.
· The PCC commenced a public engagement programme across the three counties in August which ended on 28th August, the full business case was not be shared with stakeholders or the PCP before the end of this consultation.
· It is understood that at a PCP meeting on 5th October some of the business case may be shared with the PCP before its submission to the Home Office.
· DCC had not formally been consulted and this has not been discussed at DCC cabinet or Scrutiny Committee
The proposed merger will impact funding and on Council Tax across Devon A much higher proportion of Devon and Cornwall’s total funding (61.5%) comes from government. Only 53% of Dorset’s funding comes from government and a higher proportion comes from the police precept element. Overall, government funding is more per head for Devon and Cornwall (£103) than Dorset (£85). This would fall to £97.6 per head for a combined force. Having received minimal information regarding the financial impact or benefits of the potential merger, it is difficult to know whether current levels of funding, alongside the substantial reserves held by both forces, would prove sufficient to underwrite any additional costs arising from the merger of the force areas. This is particularly relevant in attempting to understand how the additional 430 police officers or staff would be funded as a result of the merger At the moment, tax payers in Dorset in an average Band D property pay around £18 a year more for their policing than householders in Devon and Cornwall. Legally, the levels of police precept for both areas must be harmonised for the merger to take place. Will Dorset rates are harmonised down to the Devon and Cornwall level? This seems to have been ruled out. Another proposal is that the rate for Devon and Cornwall will be increased to the Dorset level to fund extra police officers. The estimated increase would mean an extra payment of £1-3 per month (£18 per year) for average Band D residents in Devon and Cornwall.
This motion proposes that the
· Council writes to the PCC to request that the full business case is sent to DCC for its comments before any proposal is submitted to the Home Secretary;
·
Council
opposes the merger on information it currently has available to it
that it will mean an increase of £18 per year council tax for average Band
D residents in Devon and Cornwall and writes to the PCC and if
appropriate the Home secretary with its views;
· Council censures the PCC in relation to her consultation on the merger as the stakeholder consultation was carried out while important local authority stakeholders were in summer recess and without the business case being made available to stakeholders so that the no meaningful consultation could take place.
In accordance with Standing Order 6(6) the Notice of Motion was referred, without discussion, to the Cabinet for consideration.