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Merging police forces in the South West is 'the right thing to do'

PCC Alison Hernandez, CC Shaun Sawyer, CC James Vaughan and PCC Martyn Underhill.

The chief constables of Devon & Cornwall Police and Dorset Police have said that merging the two police forces is the right thing to do.

Police and Crime Commissioners Alison Hernandez (Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly) and Martyn Underhill (Dorset) have launched a public survey to know what the public think of the plans for a merger of the two forces, with Ms Hernandez saying that public support is vital for her to back the merger.

And if a merger did go ahead, residents in Devon & Cornwall may have to pay more as the precept levied on households as part of their council tax to pay for policing is currently £18 lower in Devon and Cornwall than in Dorset.

But in a joint statement Chief Constables Shaun Sawyer (Devon and Cornwall) and James Vaughan (Dorset) said: “We believe the proposed merger is also the right thing to do, not only for our communities but also in respect of the wider South West landscape and our workforce who are actively managing those increasing demands on a daily basis.”

They added: “The merger is set in the context of an ever increasing local, national and international demand on policing which requires investment and new approaches. This, in addition to the increasing financial challenges which the PCCs are actively seeking to address, is amongst some of the arguments in favour of a merger."

Go to www.futurepolicing.co.uk for more information about the proposed merger and to complete a survey. The survey will run from Friday 29 June until Monday 27 August.

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