Frontline services are expected to feel the brunt of cuts

George Osborne’s austerity measures designed to cut the deficit will affect law and order, says Lancashire’s top cop.

Lancashire Police has announced it will cut around 1000 jobs over the next four years to save in the region of £50m.

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Steve Finnigan told ITV Granada that it could not guarantee there would not be an increase in crime.

But substantial costs cutting measures in Lancashire are in response to planned cuts of up to 25% in the Home Office budget.

It is unclear at the moment how many police officers and civilian staff will be affected by this announcement.

Chief Constable Steve Finnigan, said: “The Constabulary is likely to face significant cuts in its budget from April next year as a result of the government announcement that it will cut 25 per cent of the Home Office budget, the majority of which goes to police forces.

“We have been preparing for cuts for some time and to date we have identified savings of around £10million, but following the budget announcement it has become clear that this won’t be enough.

“The precise amount of savings we will need to make won’t be known until the Comprehensive Spending Review in October but we believe that we may have to find around £50million over the next four years. This could mean the prospect of reductions in police officers and police staff of around 1,000 people.

“The challenge for the Constabulary is to come through the next few years with a reduced budget and fewer people while still delivering high quality policing services to our communities.”

In depth cuts to government departments will be announced on October 20 as the coalition Government prepare to reduce the deficit.