Police funding cuts 'could cost 40,000 jobs'

Up to 40,000 frontline police jobs could be axed if Government funding cuts go ahead, the Police Federation has said.

Simon Reed, vice-chairman of the body which represents officers in England and Wales, said cuts of 25 per cent would "devastate" the police service. It was "inevitable" that crime would go up, he added.

The West Midlands force could lose up to 1,000 officers as it makes cuts of £140 million, figures released by the Police Federation has showed.

Greater Manchester Constabulary has lost 221 officers since last December, and North Wales will lose 251 officers in the next four years, the figures showed.

Several federations - including those in the West Midlands, Cleveland, Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, Hampshire, Devon & Cornwall, Northamptonshire and Durham - all warned that "major incidents will get a lot worse".

Others predicted increases in anti-social behaviour and burglary.