Police, Schools and Health face the deep squeeze

Published in Stockport Express on Wed 3rd Mar 2010

Stockport's PCSOs are a welcome sight around the Borough, crime rates have fallen in the last year, and police partnership with the Council and other agencies is even beginning to sort out the mindless vandals that cause so much grief.

That's the good news, and I was delighted to meet the town's new Police Chief Superintendent last week to get an update on it. Not such good news is that the force now faces years of belt-tightening. Greater Manchester's Chief Constable says plainly that there will be fewer police officers in future. The economic crash that has cost many Stockport families dearly is going hit our local Police service too.

They are not alone. Stockport's schools are to lose £1,700,000 of government grant this coming year - that's around £100,000 for each secondary school - because although Whitehall agrees that would be our fair share, they cannot afford to give it to us. So either our schools have to lose out or Council Tax goes up.

The NHS isn't going to escape either. Already plans to rebuild clinics in Romiley, Offerton, and Hazel Grove have gone on the back burner. There's a chronic local shortage of dentists, and physiotherapists, and when I asked the Minister of Health, he admitted that our Health Visitor numbers were falling too.

Stockport's Police, schools, and the NHS locally are all in the firing line. And that's before the cuts really start. It's obvious to everyone that the recession isn't over, and that there will be more pain to come.

That's why it is so important to get people back in work and our economy going again before we slash back all spending. In contrast, the Conservative's cuts would be like switching off the life support machine before the patient even gets to the hospital.

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