Twenty Hampshire Police Stations Shut by Tories and Labour

12.50.42pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 10th Aug 2004

Hampshire has lost twenty local police stations since 1992 under both Conservative Home Secretary Michael Howard and now the Labour government, according to Home Office figures released to the Liberal Democrats.

Despite claims to be clamping-down on crime, Labour nation-wide has presided over the closure of three police stations a month since 1997. A previously unpublished Home Office survey shows that a total of 536 police stations have been lost since 1992, including 227 under Labour.

The rate of closures was even higher during Michael Howard's term as Home Secretary, when police stations were closed at a rate of one a week. The figures were released to Liberal Democrat shadow Home Secretary and Winchester MP Mark Oaten.

Hampshire MEP Chris Huhne, who is Eastleigh's Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate, said that police stations were a crucial fixed point in the community that gave reassurance and provided a place of safety. 'Both Tories and Labour have let people down by failing to protect them' he said.

Money is being driven instead into fortress super stations in city centres to tackle rising street crime. And many small stations, thought expensive and inefficient, have been axed leaving their neighbourhoods without a fixed police presence. Hampshire has lost 20 stations compared with 18 in Nottinghamshire and 15 in Greater Manchester. Essex has lost 59 stations and Gloucestershire 23.

'People want to see visible policing in their areas, and they want to be able to call in at a police station not just talk to an anonymous voice at a call centre miles away who does not know the difference between Hamble and Hedge End' said Mr Huhne. 'We are losing the important point of human contact where people can talk to a police officer at a station in person'.

Mr Huhne was also concerned that many of the police stations that have been kept open are increasingly only on a part-time basis. 'Policing begins, ends and succeeds in the local community' said Mr Huhne.