Surrey Police rate cap approved

MPs have approved a government order capping Surrey Police Authority's budget for 2009/10.

Local Government Minister Rosie Winterton said councils had been warned to keep increases substantially below 5% for this year.

Only Surrey and Derbyshire police authorities had set "excessive" rises.

She told the Commons: "The current economic climate makes it even more important that local authorities keep council tax under control."

Consecutive increases

The authority was allowed to keep its £191.5m budget for 2008/09, but was restricted to £189.6m for 2009/10.

Ms Winterton said that out of 421 authorities, including 37 police authorities, Surrey was the only one that had ever set an "excessive" council tax increase for two years in succession.

This is an authority that has... one of the lowest costs per head of population Dan Rogerson Liberal Democrat

For the Conservatives, Bob Neill said it was a "bit rich" for the government to be "lecturing" a police authority about increases in spending.

Surrey Police Authority had been given the highest rating for value for money by the Audit Commission, he said.

Liberal Democrat spokesman Dan Rogerson said locally-elected representatives in Surrey had told him that many people were behind the police authority in protecting front-line policing.

"This is an authority that has taken steps to be as efficient as it can be and it does have one of the lowest costs per head of population," he said.

Conservative Sir Paul Beresford, the MP for Mole Valley and a member of the Communities and Local Government Select Committee, said the plan was "ludicrous" as it would only save local people 32p a month.

Re-billing would cost £1.2m, which would translate into a reduction of 24 police officers.

Ms Winterton said last year Lincolnshire Police Authority estimated a re-billing cost of £1m but the actual cost was £380,000.

The order was approved by 239 votes to 33, a government majority of 206.