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Labour is warning of a "lost generation" in the police after a huge increase in the number of officers nearing retirement.

Recruitment freezes and brutal cuts have been blamed for figures showing 48% of officers are now over the age of 40 - up from just 39% ten years ago.

Meanwhile the proportion aged under 26 dropped from 8% of all PCs in 2007 to just 5% last year.

Reforms by the Tory government in 2015 raised the normal pension age from 55 to 60 for police officers.

But those who'd already hit 50 by March this year have their retirement age protected at 55 - meaning most of that group will be out by 2022.

Labour believes the ageing force is "storing up a time-bomb" as bosses are faced with recruiting a glut of new officers when existing ones end their service.

Shadow Policing Minister Louise Haigh, who at 30 is one of the youngest MPs in Parliament, said: "These figures reveal that the legacy of the brutal police cuts will be with us for many years to come.

“The fall in the number of younger officers is storing up a demographic time-bomb in police forces across the country.

“It’s vital that police forces balance experience and fresh talent, but a lost generation of younger officers risks leaving older officers under more strain than ever before.”

Police officers have been hit by the 1% cap on public sector pay since the Tories took power, and several forces had freezes on recruitment for several years.

The figures, compiled for Labour by the House of Commons Library, show the proportion of officers under 26 reached a low of just 3% at the height of recruitment freezes in 2014.

(Image: PA)

The proportion of officers under 26 has since recovered to 5% - but this is still well below what it was in 2007.

And overall the proportion of cops under 40 has fallen steadily every year, from 61% in 2007 to 52% in 2017.

On top of this, there are also 20,000 fewer police officers overall than when the Tories took power in 2010.

Just 1% of officers were over the age of 55 last year.

A Home Office spokesman said: "Officers do a vital job and policing remains an attractive and well-paid career with application rates for police officer jobs far higher than the number of jobs available.

"Police workforces are now more diverse than ever and that includes having an essential mix of experience and new recruits."

Meanwhile new figures today showed the number of armed police in England and Wales have jumped by more than 600 in the last year.

(Image: PA)

There were 6,278 armed officers in March 2017, reversing a steady fall since the Tories took power - but still down 10% since 2010.

And although numbers rose overall, 13 forces still lost armed officers between 2016 and 2017.

Avon and Somerset, Cleveland, West Mercia, Gloucestershire, Merseyside and Wiltshire all lost more than 10% of their armed officers year-on-year.

Ms Haigh said: "Given the unprecedented nature of the terrorist threat it is incomprehensible that last year alone we saw forces nationwide still losing armed officers.”