POLICE commissioner Angus Macpherson has blasted an unfair government formula that sees Wiltshire Police given less cash than similar forces.

That government formula was yesterday criticised as ineffective and detached from the changing nature of policing by the National Audit Office.

In a report, the quango said police forces had seen their funding fall by 19 per cent since 2010. Yet pressure on forces has increased, with more crimes to investigate.

Amyas Morse, head of the NAO, said: “If the Home Office does not understand what is going on it will not be able to direct resources to where they are needed, with the risk that the situation could get any worse.”

Welcoming the report, Angus Macpherson, police and crime commissioner for Wiltshire and Swindon, said: “I have been pressing the case with ministers at every opportunity for Wiltshire Police to get a fair slice of the funding cake. The National Audit Office agrees that reform of funding is needed.

“We all face the same complex range of threats, a fact brought home to us all very powerfully with the Salisbury chemical weapon attack.

“We get £151 per person to spend on policing. The national figure is £171. It does not make sense to give policing in Wiltshire £20 less per person than the national average.”

He said the Home Office had done the right thing last year in giving police commissioners permission to increase by up to £12 a year the part of council tax that goes to policing.

“Last year’s increase allowed me to protect community policing team numbers across Wiltshire and Swindon,” Mr Macpherson added. “I need to do the same again next year. Officer numbers should not fall any further."

The Police Federation labelled the NAO report damning for the Home Office, which it said lacked a clear understanding of the basic levels of funding needed to maintain a police service.

Chairman John Apter said: “This report echoes what we have been saying for some time and must serve as a wake-up call to the government. For too long it has turned a blind eye to the crisis in policing that has occurred on its watch and is of its own making.”

The Home Office hit back at the gloomy view in the NAO report. A spokesman said: "Our decision to empower locally accountable police and crime commissioners to make decisions using their local expertise does not mean that we do not understand the demands on police forces.

“We remain committed to working closely with police and delivered a £460m increase in overall police funding in 2018/19, including increased funding for local policing through council tax.”