Nantwich residents face another council tax rise after Cheshire Police announced it is to increase its portion by almost 4 per cent.
It will add £5.69 a year to the bill of a typical Band D home, and comes on top of a large rise from Nantwich Town Council.
Margaret Ollerenshaw (pictured), chairman of Cheshire Police Authority, defended the small increase but also revealed the force will still have to reduce the number of police officers.
She said: “It means the reduction in Cheshire during 2012-13 can be limited to 25, instead of the 48 required if we opted to freeze council tax.
“We are working against a background of budget cuts. £33 million in savings must be found by 2014-15, compared to the figures for 2010-11. That level of saving is not easy.
“It is depressing to see the level of cuts we are having to make following the steady investment we have made over the life of the authority to ensure the Constabulary has the capability and capacity to make Cheshire safer and to protect the public from harm.
“We have identified savings required next year. As more than eighty per cent of the budget relates to people, it is regrettable that the scale of the cuts means unavoidable reductions in the number of police officers and staff.”
The force was offered a one-off grant to freeze council tax for 2012-13, but this would have been taken away in 2013-14, leading to tougher cuts.
“As a result we decided on a small increase in council tax, which will offset some of the reduction in police officer posts,” Mrs Ollerenshaw added.
“The Chief Constable Dave Whatton gave us his assurance that this funding will be used to maintain visible and accessible officers in our communities.”
In November, the authority will hand over its duties and powers to an elected Police and Crime Commissioner.
The annual policing charge for a Band D home will be £150.22 in 2012-13, compared to £144.53 in 2011-12.
Don’t worry about the residents – after all we all have bottomless pockets, don’t we? Of course, CEC councillors each get a minimum £12000 a year pocket money, so they don’t need to worry. I’ll bet that’s being increased, too. I heard there was a recession on. Perhaps it’s not true and all the austerity measures, benefits cuts, and job cuts and stuff are figments of my imagination.