Randerson angry at 14% Home Office funding cut for Cardiff's Community Safety Partnership

2.40.20pm UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 15th Jun 2007

Jenny Randerson and the Welsh Liberal Democrats think Labour should abandon their ID card scheme and invest in local police, rather than slashing community safety budgets

Jenny Randerson, the Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for Cardiff Central, has expressed anger and dismay on learning that funding for Cardiff 's Community Safety Partnership is being cut by 14% this year by the Westminster Labour Government.

As a result of a funding crisis in the Home Office, all Community Safety Partnerships in Wales have just been advised that they will be receiving 14.06% less funding for 2007-08 than they received in 2006-07. This is despite previous advice from the Home Office circulated by e-mail that "partnerships should plan on the basis of indicative allocations that are the same as 2006/07".

Jenny Randerson AM commented, "The Community Safety Partnership plays a fundamental role in bringing relevant bodies together locally to find ways to best tackle crime and anti-social behaviour throughout the city. Such vital work will be deeply undermined by this draconian cut in funding.

"And to make matters worse, not only have we not been able to plan for this cut having previously been advised by the Home Office to expect a similar level of funding as last year, but we are only now being told how much funding we're being allocated nearly a quarter of the way through the current financial year.

"Under the present Labour Government, the Home Office has lurched from crisis to crisis and this is just the latest example. Jobs and key services throughout Wales are now being put at risk as a result of this bungle over funding, which is nothing short of gross incompetence. It's no wonder that Labour's John Reid has said he will be quitting soon as Home Secretary."

ENDS

In an e-mail from a Home Office official to Cardiff 's Community Safety Manager sent on 23 February this year, it was stated:

Thank you for forwarding this to me. I have to tell you that the Home Office Board has yet to approve budget delegations from what has proved to be a very difficult planning round. I, and colleagues to whom this email is copied, are well aware of the difficulties posed to frontline colleagues whilst uncertainty remains and can understand any frustration.

The position remains that partnerships should plan on the basis of indicative allocations that are the same as 2006/07. I would urge restraint in taking decisions over issuing redundancy notices where there remains a clear message that planning should be done on this basis, and would indeed caution against doing so given the current position.

Once delegations are confirmed I can assure you that we will work to inform you and others of allocations as soon as possible.