Lincolnshire’s police commissioner says the force are closer than ever to declaring bankruptcy after being forced to use their emergency reserves. Leaders decided to use the money set aside for next year’s budget problems rather than allow up to 200 officers and 200 staff to have their jobs cut.
However, it leaves the county’s police service in a perilous position next year, waiting on emergency help from the government. If this doesn’t come, even more severe cuts would need to be made.
Lincolnshire MPs have previously warned that the force may become the first in the country to effectively go bankrupt without urgent support.
Public bodies must issue a Section 114 notice if they can’t set a balanced budget – as happened with Nottingham and Birmingham City Councils. The decision to use savings means that balancing the books for the 2026/27 financial year will become even more difficult.
Potential reductions in staff have been delayed until that date, and the force will now start recruitment for vital positions which have been left vacant. Police and Crime Commissioner Marc Jones (Con) said the only alternative was to let the law enforcement “wither on the vine”.
“Talks are progressing well with the Government and we are still incredibly hopeful that officials and ministers see the problems caused by generations of underfunding for Lincolnshire Police,” he said.
“While those talks continue, myself and the Chief were faced with some extremely tough decisions. We have allowed vacancies to remain unfilled and not replaced people who have retired, relocated or left.
“While that has allowed us to make savings, it has become obvious that this has put front-line services under considerable strain. As a result, I have taken the decision to stop further job losses and recruit much-needed staff.
“We could make further staff redundant and oversee a critical decline in services or we could delay certain projects, take money set aside for future years and maintain current levels of staffing.
“Doing the latter makes next year even tougher, but I simply refuse to allow our law enforcement services to wither on the vine. It is unacceptable to our residents and it is unacceptable to me.
“This does not mean our financial worries are not as critical or significant as before, in fact it means the problems only deepen for next year. Getting support from the government is now even more important.”
Chief Constable Paul Gibson said cutting officers to balance the budget would “not allow the delivery of adequate services to the public of Lincolnshire.” The county’s MPs have repeatedly written to the Home Office asking for urgent action, warning it’s “not a political issue, it’s a matter of public safety”.
The next budget will be the third financial cliff edge the force has faced in the last year, with the government providing a short-term £5million boost last year.
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