Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats in Preston, Councillor Pauline Brown has slammed Labour’s budget proposal as “abysmal”.

Cllr Pauline Brown claims Labour’s proposals could lead to 11 PCSO’s  being lost across Preston. She is urging all Chairs of local PACT forums to respond to the Councils consultation on the ruling Labour group’s proposals.

Cllr Brown said, “PCSOs have contributed to bringing overall crime figures down. Not only are they a presence on our streets, gaining local knowledge, but also liaise with community groups, like PACTs, and engage with many of the local youths. It is abysmal that Preston City Council are cutting their budget for PCSOs.

“It does not ring true when Labour say they will work with the police to tackle serious crime prevention. It is true that they are going to continue to fund PCSOs to the tune of £55,000. However, over the past year there have been two separate amounts of funding for PCSOs, one of £55k, the other of £124k. By ending the latter, which has match funding implications, they are putting the jobs of eleven local PCSO’s at risk. This will be a disaster for the fight against crime and anti-social behaviour in Preston.”

Cllr Brown added, “these cuts have nothing to do with the cuts to police forces across the country. Before the last general election even Labour were proposing cuts to the police. The cuts to PCSOs are down to Labour’s local priorities.”