Police boss urged to 'get a grip' on knife crime in Milton Keynes

Leading MK councillors have called on the Police and Crime Commissioner to get his priorities right and "get a grip" on knife crime on our streets.

They are urging elected PCC Matthew Barber to focus more police resources on the city after the recent spate of stabbings, which has caused three deaths in the past seven weeks.

The Police and Crime Commissioner is a directly elected position responsible for tackling crime and policing across the Thames Valley area.

Last year Mr Barber, a Conservative, was elected promising more police on the streets, says the Milton Keynes Labour and Lib Dem Progressive Alliance of councillors.

Today the councillors have demanded that Mr Barber ensures more of these police officers in Milton Keynes to tackle knife crime, and spends less on "leafy areas" in other parts of Thames Valley, such as Henley-on-Thames.

They claim that, despite pledging more police during his election campaign, Mr Barber recently refused to answer questions from councillors over police numbers.

And they allege that has also chosen to prioritise rural crime and traveller encampments across Thames Valley above knife crime in his new Policing and Crime Plan.

Cllr Lauren Townsend, MK Cabinet member for Community Safety said: “The Police and Crime Commissioner has lost control of knife crime in Milton Keynes. He needs to get a grip and sort his priorities out.

"We need more police on the streets of MK to prevent these awful crimes that are having a devastating impact on our community.”

Cllr Robin Bradburn, Deputy Leader of MK Council said: “The government established Police and Crime Commissioners as they say it makes someone accountable for policing and tackling crime. Yet Mr Barber simply refused to answer simple questions from councillors as to what the establishment figure for police numbers is across Thames Valley.”

“Now he is hitting local people with a 4.3% police tax rise from April.

"I think the people of Milton Keynes are justified in asking if Mr Barber really cares about this area. It seems odd that as violent crime spikes here in MK, he’s prioritising rural crime and talking about traveller encampments.”

In response to a call from local Conservatives for more CCTV on our streets, Cllr Bradburn said: “MK Tories think the public are silly enough to believe that CCTV is any sort of substitute for police on the streets. It isn’t. We need an increase in police numbers, not gimmicks.”

Cllr Lauren Townsend added: “We know policing alone won’t solve knife crime. That’s why despite £1billion in cuts to youth services across England in the past ten years, MK Council is investing in longer term initiatives to tackle the problem. More youth services. More education. Reducing poverty.

"However, we need more police in the city today."

The Police and Crime Panel this month approved increasing the policing element of local council tax to £241.28 for a Band D property. The rise equates to an extra 83p a month for the average household.

Mr Barber said the increase could raise £9m for policing across the Thames Valley force area, which includes Milton Keynes.

He launched an online survey asking people what they wanted to see the money spent on. Categories included knife crime, tackling illegal encampments, more police officers and reducing anti-social behaviour.

Last month he unveiled his spending plan for the year. This includes the recruitment of more officers, beyond the Home Office funded programme, the development of a specialist rape and sexual offences team, and a dedicated team to fast track cases, reducing delays for victims and releasing officers back to the frontline.

The plan also includes improvements to forensics to speed up investigations and bring more criminals to justice, continuation of the Rural Crime Task Force and the introduction of a Drugs Task Force.

It will further improve essential technological infrastructure and systems to better support service delivery .

But there is no specific mention of knife crime in Milton Keynes.

Mr Barber said: “These plans don’t just strengthen the capabilities for the coming year but lay the foundations for investment for the medium term to ensure that as police officer numbers continue to increase, the Force is equipped to focus on the crimes that matter most to the public and deliver justice for victims.

“In addition to the core policing budget, my work to reduce reoffending will improve the chances of those coming out of prison, as well as preventing more people from becoming victims in the future. This is part of my focus on crime prevention that also means a longer term partnership with local councils to help address anti-social behaviour across Thames Valley.”