By Richard Tracey AM, London Assembly (Conservative, Merton and Wandsworth)
I am writing in response to the claims made by Siobhain McDonagh MP in your article "MP hails community police cuts 'u-turn'".
It is public knowledge that no decisions have been made on safer neighbourhood teams (SNTs) until after the MPS review this summer.
Therefore the assertion that a U-turn has been made, when no 'turn' has been made at all, makes no sense.
Moreover, Boris Johnson has explicitly said that Merton has never changed its SNT model.
The SNT model of one sergeant, two police officers and three PCSOs was in place three years ago in Merton, was still in place a month ago, and is in place now.
Merton's Borough Commander has managed community policing very successfully within this model. Evidence of this can be seen in the significant success in reducing Merton's burglary rate.
The appointment of a new sergeant in Longthornton appears to be Siobhain McDonagh's sole, arbitrary evidence.
The fact is that the ward was simply without a sergeant for a few months while they looked for a replacement.
As in all boroughs, numbers will fluctuate as some police and PCSOs apply for other posts or resign.
Boris Johnson has made it crystal clear that SNTs were not and are not threatened, and Ms McDonagh's continued attempt to distort this fact for her own purposes is regrettable.
What do you think? Send your letter to: letters@wimbledonguardian.co.uk
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