Chief constable criticises CCTV room closure plan

1 hour ago

Kaleigh WattersonCheshire political reporter

News image — Chief constable Mark Roberts says he believes the plans are likely to lead to an increase in crime in the area

Cheshire Police Cheshire Police Chief Constable Mark Roberts in his police uniform. He is a middle-aged man with receding light grey hair and blue eyes. There are trees in the background. — Chief constable Mark Roberts says he believes the plans are likely to lead to an increase in crime in the area

The chief constable of Cheshire Police has criticised plans by a local authority to close its town centre CCTV control room as part of money-saving measures.

Mark Roberts said he believed the closure of the Warrington site would lead to a fall in the number of arrests and a "likely" increase in crime levels in the area.

Warrington Council is facing a £179m gap in its budget over the next four years and has been given permission by the government to increase council tax by up to 7.5%.

The authority was due to discuss its budget at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday ahead of the final decision being made on 2 March.

'Passive position'

Ahead of the cabinet meeting, the authority published a list of savings it was seeking to make in its budget.

In the documents, it said the CCTV control room proposal would involve leaving the cameras in a "passive position" instead of monitoring them live.

It said this would save £226,000 over the next two years and lead to the loss of three jobs.

The report said it was the responsibility of police to ensure the safety of residents and that the savings assumes an agreement would be reached for council funding to reduce to 50% for the next year and be removed by April 2027.

But Roberts said the CCTV control room had been a "key contributor" to the reduction of crime and disorder in Warrington.

"I want to make it clear that if the council goes ahead with the proposals to move to a passive, unmonitored system I have no doubt that it will substantially diminish the number of arrests and is likely to result in an increase in crime levels in the area," he said.

"Cheshire Constabulary remains committed to working collaboratively with Warrington Borough Council to keep residents safe.

"However, I truly feel that the proposal as currently stated is a significant backwards step, which will have a substantial impact on the safety and security of local residents and businesses."

'Urgent action'

Roberts said the force had not had "any constructive discussions" with the council and had yet to receive a response from them.

Warrington Council said it would need to make some "extremely difficult decisions".

"With regard to the proposed CCTV saving specifically, if this saving is approved, alternative funding options could be explored with partners," a spokesperson said.

An updated document to the cabinet said following the final local government finance settlement and a review of charges around borrowing, it was now facing a four-year budget gap of £178.9m.

After planned savings, this would reduce to £44.7m over the period but that "further urgent action" was required to address the remaining gap.

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