Henry Smith MP has welcomed news this week of a substantial £450 million increase in police funding across England and Wales.

This includes up to an additional £270 million in police force budgets, so individual forces have the resources they need to respond to changes in demand. Police funding in Sussex is planned to increase by £8.6 million in 2018-19 as a result of these changes.

Henry said;

“The first responsibility of government is to keep our country and its citizens safe, and to protect our way of life and our values. Over the past seven years crime has fallen by more than a third across the country, but we know there’s more to do.

“This is why there’s additional investment to help Sussex Police keep people safe in Crawley and across the county.

“I’m grateful for the service of local officers all year round but especially over the Christmas and New Year period.”

The Crawley MP has also welcomed news that the counter terrorism policing budget will rise by 7 per cent, with a £50 million increase taking it to at least £757 million. This means the Government is now spending more on counter terrorism policing than ever before.