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Howard's Way.... a weekly column from the Rt. Hon. Michael Howard QC. MP. 

31 January 2008

It is very rare for a senior police officer to speak out as frankly, even in a private letter to the Home Secretary, as did the Chief Constable of Kent, Michael Fuller, in the letter he wrote to Jacqui Smith in October.

That letter has now been leaked. In it Mr Fuller told the Home Secretary that ‘migration surges’ had contributed to an increase of more than a third in violent crimes in the county over 5 years to 2007.

He says immigration accounts for 78% of Kent’s population growth and warned of the soaring cost of translation services, up by a third in 3 years.

Mr Fuller says Kent’s population is expected to rise from 1.6 million now to 1.9 million in 2029 – mostly from immigration.

In his letter he said, “I feel it essential that I set out the impact population growth is having in Kent and the pressure it is placing on finite resources.”

He says that the total extra cost to the force is £34 million over the past 3 years and he will need an extra 560 constables if the immigration population continues to surge.

“There is a danger that if the future funding regime fails to respond to dynamic changes in migration the extra demand this generates will impact negatively on performance.”

This is a very stark warning. I hope the Home Secretary takes note.

I want the streets of Kent to be safe for people to walk on at night – and not just for those looking for a quick kebab!