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Money to prevent crime have been cut by more than half since the Conservatives came to power, new analysis reveals.

Tory councils have slashed the most from their crime prevention budgets due to the swingeing Tory cuts which began in 2010.

Over the last year the number of violent crimes and sex offences recorded by police in England and Wales rose sharply.

Knife crime and robbery increased in the 12 months to September 2017 compared with the previous year, the Office for National Statistics said.

About 5.3 million crimes were recorded in all in that 12-month period, up 14%.

Between 2009/10 and 2017/18, spending on crime reduction by local authorities has been cut by almost 60%, falling from £363m to £154m.

Over the same period, the number of council employees working on ‘crime reduction’ has fallen by more than a third, from 120,334 to just 77,720.

Of the 20 local authorities with the largest cuts to crime reduction expenditure since 2009/10, 15 are Conservative-controlled.

West Dorset saw a 100% cut with £17,529 cut from its budget, Sevenoaks had its enttire 9,044 budget slashed and West Somerset lost its total of £6,921.

In its Serious Violence Strategy published last year, the Home Office emphasised the importance of the work carried out by local authorities in tackling rising crime.

Then-Home Secretary Amber Rudd said councils had a role to play.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

She said “I am clear that we cannot arrest our way out of this issue and that tackling serious violence requires a multiple-strand approach involving police, local authorities, health and education partners to name but a few.”

But even Theresa May ’s own council area of Windsor and Maidenhead cut its spending on crime reduction by 98.6% (£2.2m).

Labour , who analysed the figures, said the government “can’t keep people safe on the cheap.”

It comes ahead of the publication of the latest crime stats on Thursday which are expected to show a further rise.

Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott MP, said: “The Tories have slashed council budgets but demand they do more with less. Taken together with years of police cuts, austerity is making our communities less safe.

“Theresa May needs to wake up to the fact that you can’t keep people safe on the cheap.

“This government is failing to tackle rising recorded crime. If they are serious about protecting the public they need to begin to reverse the damage they have done.

“Labour will ensure that local authorities have sustainable funding, invest in our youth services and put 10,000 extra police on our streets to keep our communities safe”.

The LGA previously said: “The money local government has to maintain the vital services our communities rely on is running out fast.

“Pressures are growing in children’s services, adult social care, and efforts to tackle homelessness. This is leaving increasingly less money for councils to fund other vital preventative services.

“The Government must recognise the urgent need to use the Spending Review to tackle the funding gap facing local government, which will reach £8 billion by 2025.”

A MHCLG spokesperson said: “Local authorities are democratically-elected, independent bodies that are responsible for setting their own budgets and managing their resources.

“We are investing in Britain’s future by providing local authorities with £91.5 billion over the next two years to meet the needs of their residents.

“At Budget we announced more than £1 billion in extra funding for local government to help address pressures on services.

“In recognition of substantial increases in pressures and the police having met efficiency milestones, we are extending the precept flexibility for Police and Crime Commissioners to £24.

"This increase has been balanced with extra grant to ensure forces are able to offer improved services whilst covering financial pressures.”