Crime Commissioner appeals for summer policing funds

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon and Cornwall has called for extra summer funding to tackle rising anti-social behaviour.

Alison Hernandez previously asked the government for £17 million in 2019 to pay the costs of policing summer visitors over three years.

At the same time, the force received 8p per person, per day less than the England and Wales average in core funding.

The latest figures show the gap is widening to 10p per person per day.

Ms Hernandez said the region had already seen a 29 per cent rise in anti-social behavior in May compared to the rest of 2024.

Speaking to the BBC, she said: “We know the summer is coming, so fundamentally we want to make sure we can start building this case for the new government to understand the policing issues of the summer, particularly in Devon, Cornwall and the Isles Scilly.

“If you have solid evidence, I don’t think they can argue against it – it was a bit of a challenge with the previous government.”

A Home Office spokesman told the BBC: “This new government has made cracking down on anti-social behavior one of our first steps to deliver safer streets and safer communities.

“We have also committed to providing 13,000 new neighborhood policing and community support officers and introducing tougher powers to tackle re-offending.”

Asked why people should report anti-social behaviour, Ms Hernandez said: “The main thing is the police need to know what’s going on.

“It helps us get a picture of what’s going on in Devon and Cornwall and it certainly helps the chief constable to put his resources where the police officers need to be.

“So reporting is critical.”

She added that people who report a case of anti-social behavior three or more times in a six-month period and still see no action can apply for an anti-social behavior case review.

This can be done through the police or their local council.