Figures released today show that almost 21,000 police officers have been recruited in England and Wales through the Police Officer Uplift – our pledge to recruit 20,000 extra officers. This was a manifesto pledge I stood on in 2019 and I'm delighted we've hit the target.
I spoke with the Policing Minister, Chris Philp, who confirmed to me that this includes an extra 332 officers in Staffordshire - exceeding our initial target of 300. The total police headcount in Staffordshire is now up to 1,980.
Reaching this target means that there are more police out on the beat reducing crime, tackling antisocial behaviour and protecting victims.