On Monday I joined other Merseyside MPs to meet with Policing Minister Nick Hurd. We all raised our concerns about the severe cuts to the budget of our local police force and the effect this is having in the communities we represent. I discuss the Minister’s response in the video above.

Huge and unsustainable cuts, imposed by this Government, have left our police with 25% fewer officers and a £110million cut to their funding at a time when we’re seeing more violent and organised crime on our streets. This is even more concerning given the dramatic increase in knife crime that has been widely reported in the media.

Merseyside Police have an excellent record of tackling violent and organised crime, but they’re now stretched to the limit. Local Labour MPs have been calling for more funding for Merseyside Police for four years, at the meeting on Monday we finally got agreement for extra money to tackle knife crime.

While this is a positive step forward much more support is needed to get the force back to full strength. I will continue working with my Labour colleagues to demand the funding Merseyside Police needs.