COUNTY forces like Wiltshire need extra financial support to tackle the scourge of county lines drug gangs, Wiltshire’s police and crime commissioner has said.

Government this month announced a £100m fund to help police tackle knife crime.

But Angus Macpherson, police and crime commissioner, suggested the smaller forces had been left out. The cash was given to areas where violence was worse.

“The £100m is going to seven forces and, while those forces undoubtedly have a problem with county lines and are metropolitan forces, we’ve got to look at the business model for county lines,” Mr Macpherson said. That business model saw unscrupulous drug dealers from cities like London and Birmingham force addicts and children to sell their product.

“We need some funding for other police forces, who do recognise the business model and are working to counter it.

“They’re not able to police their communities in the way the public would necessarily expect. I want a little bit of money to come back into the counties.”