6. Statement by the Minister for Social Justice: Delivery of the Programme for Government commitment to fund additional PCSOs

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:46 pm on 26 April 2022.

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Photo of Jane Hutt Jane Hutt Labour 4:46, 26 April 2022

Thank you very much indeed, Jack Sargeant, and thank you for your long-standing commitment to PCSOs and for representing your constituents, who often are at the sharp end, for many of the reasons that Peredur also commented on in terms of inadequate support and the strong policing that we need to protect those communities. Our PCSOs are vitally important, because they are stepping in. It makes the case, doesn't it, for the devolution of policing, because they are there at the sharp end of intervention, prevention and engagement, and then ensuring that criminal justice is delivered to your constituents in your communities.

Yes, there are fewer police officers than there were in 2010, when austerity started. And yes, also, where are the extra 20,000 police officers in England and Wales? You will recall, and you've commented on it, Operation Uplift. That was the Home Office's scheme to employ those extra 20,000 police officers. I was just checking, and by 2023, police numbers will remain below pre-austerity levels. In 2010, there were 7,369 police officers in Wales; by 2019, it had fallen to 6,898. We lost 471 police officers, and yet still we've only got 302 recruited. What has happened to these extra 20,000 police officers in England and Wales? This is a truly important priority of this Welsh Labour Government. We will progress it with the support that we have here for the devolution of policing and making sure that policing does reach our communities that are at the sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis brought on by this Tory Government, ensuring that they get the support and safety that they need.