Following today’s reports that police chiefs have been ordered to arrest fewer people to save prison space, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Member for Community Safety Cllr Alex Wallace has written to the Home Secretary to demand assurances that the new edict will not put residents safety at risk. The news comes just a week after the Labour Party set out its first six steps for government – including a crack down on antisocial behaviour, with more neighbourhood police paid for by ending wasteful contracts, tough new penalties for offenders, and a new network of youth hubs. The letter is reproduced in full below: Dear James, Northumberland residents will have read with horror the news this morning that police chiefs have been ordered to arrest fewer people because your government has mismanaged our prison system. This is a the truly shocking state of law and order after 14 years of Conservative Government. Arrests have already halved since 2010, yet now police are being told to make even fewer arrests – because of your party’s failures & chaos. That means more criminals let off, more victims let down. This is another damning indictment of the terrible mess the Conservative Party has made of our country. Our NHS is on its knees, family’s are struggling to make ends meet, there is sewage in the rivers, and now our police are told not to arrest criminals. Residents in Northumberland will understandably be alarmed at the prospect of police being forced to let criminals off the hook. You must urgently answer the following questions: ·      How long do you expect police chiefs to be ordered to arrest fewer people? ·      Have you given any consideration to the impact of this policy on the people of Northumberland – will you publish that assessment? ·      Can you guarantee that this policy doesn’t put the safety of people in Northumberland at risk? ·      Can you assure the people of Northumberland that this policy will not result in a rise in crime? ·      When does your government expect the crisis to be over – when do you expect that the order to arrest fewer people will be lifted? The sad truth here is that your government has lost control. It feels in Northumberland like you have given up, and we are paying the price. It is time for change. It is time for a General Election. You will understanding that residents in Northumberland are deeply troubled by these reports – they deserve an immediate response. I look forward to receiving it. Yours truly, Councillor Alex Wallace