Liberal Democrats attack Government over Police Station closures

10.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Sat 27th Jan 2007

Liberal Democrat Leader Sir Menzies Campbell has attacked the government over their handling of law and order issues, after figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats revealed that more than five hundred and eighty police stations have closed since Labour came to power in 1997. The worst hit areas include Essex with 66 closures, South Wales with 43 closures and Gloucestershire with 40 closures.

Sir Menzies said "No longer having a permanent police presence in their town or neighbourhood is a reality for many thousands of people. The Government should concentrate on community policing rather than spending billions on ID cards which will do little to tackle the reality of daily crime on Britain's streets and estates."