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Sajid Javid has pledged to oversee 20,000 extra police officers "pounding the pavements" if elected Prime Minister.

The Conservative leadership hopeful said he would spend £1 billion over three years to end a "culture of impunity" among criminals.

The Home Secretary declared: "More police on the beat means less crime on our streets. Not exactly rocket science is it?"

His confession confirms what most Tory ministers spent years denying - that savage cuts to numbers under the Tories have fuelled crime.

Restoring 20,000 officers would almost make up for the number slashed from forces since the Tories took office in 2010. But not quite.

Mr Javid's pledge is, however, double the 10,000 extra officers pledged by Labour.

The Bromsgrove MP is one of 11 vying to replace Theresa May as Prime Minister, with Cabinet colleagues Michael Gove, Jeremy Hunt and Matt Hancock also within the packed field.

(Image: AFP/Getty Images)

Earlier this year, Mr Javid met police chiefs amid claims of a national knife crime emergency.

A string of fatal teen stabbings sparked a heated debate over police officer numbers in England and Wales.

Police officer numbers dropped by 21,000 since the Tories took power - from 143,734 in 2010 to 122,404 in 2018.

Mrs May came under fire after she suggested that police cuts were not to blame for a spate of fatal stabbings on teenagers, saying there "was no direct correlation between certain crimes and police numbers".

But Mr Javid, writing in the Sun, contradicted this, saying: "More police on the beat means less crime on our streets. Not exactly rocket science is it?"

He added: "I'd continue work to peel back layers of bureaucracy that have crept up over decades so police can concentrate on policing, not paperwork.

"That means 20,000 more coppers. Not sat behind desks, but pounding the pavements. It's what the police want, it's what the public wants, and it's what I will deliver.

(Image: PA)

"I want to see a return to bobbies on the beat in every corner of the country. In cities, towns, villages and the countryside, I want the public to feel the confidence that comes from seeing officers in their communities.

"And I want to end the culture of impunity criminals increasingly feel as a result of lack of police presence."

The Police Federation of England and Wales have previously raised concerns of "underfunding and under resourcing policing".

Speaking in April following the publication of police-recorded crime figures by the Office of National Statistics, vice-chairman Che Donald said: "Crime across the board is going up, the only things that are not going up are police numbers, police pay and meaningful funding the Government should be investing in our police service so we can get on with tacking this highly concerning situation."