Confirmed: Why you will pay more for policing in coming year
8p per week rise will generate an extra £1.2 million to fund policing in North Yorks.
North Yorkshire
Proposals to increase the amount local residents pay towards the policing of the region have been approved.
The police precept – collected as part of annual council tax bills – is now set for an 1.99% hike in April after receiving unanimous backing by members of the area's Police and Crime Panel in a meeting earlier today.
Raising around £1.2 million throughout the whole of North Yorkshire, the hike equates to a small increase of just 8p per week for families who live in an 'average' home who pay council tax at the Band D rate.
The rise was proposed by North Yorkshire's Police Commissioner, Julia Mulligan, who said the extra money would be needed as she looks to plug tight budgets and maintain policing in the coming year.
Confirming the rise, Ms. Mulligan said, “I welcome the Panel’s backing for the 8p a week precept increase.
“When the Government decided on its contribution to North Yorkshire’s force, they assumed a precept rise of 1.99 per cent. That means a freeze in the precept would effectively mean a cash cut of £1.2 million. On top of the previous cuts and new demands on policing, that would inevitably hit services.
“I have therefore listened carefully to the public and, given their clear steer, feel this is the right action to take.
“This will, of course, help us fund the extra officers we are recruiting as well as the extra investment we are putting into tackling crimes involving vulnerable people.”