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As part of a £800m package of measures to increase productivity across public services, the Chancellor confirmed that £230m will be invested in drones and other technology in a bid to release more police officer time for frontline activities.
The Chancellor told Parliament that as part of Budget 2024, the government will be, “Rolling out time-saving and money-saving technology that speeds up police response times by allowing people to report crimes by video call and, where appropriate, use drones as first responders.”
He was keen to emphasise the government’s focus on funding projects that could see benefits within a five year period.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council is currently testing the concept of drones as a first responder with a trial taking place in Norfolk. Stuart Lawless explained in his interview with Emergency Services Times that this is where a police operated drone capability is made available with support of partner agencies to provide situational awareness at the start of incidents and before other resources arrive on scene.
The Budget also included a further £75 million to roll out a Violence Reduction Unit model across England and Wales. He said, “Violence reduction units and hotspot policing have prevented an estimated 136,000 knife crimes and other violent offences, as well as over 3,000 hospital admissions.” He added that the reductions in officer time spent on ‘unnecessary admin’ would free the equivalent of 20,000 police officers over a year
The full text of the Chancellor’s Budget 2024 speech to Parliament can be found on Hansard.