THE HOME Secretary yesterday washed her hands of any blame for the loss of 200 police officer and staff jobs in Hampshire.

Jacqui Smith said axing the posts to balance the constabulary’s books was an issue for the chief constable and the police authority. Nobody had forced their hands.

Speaking at Southampton police station, where she had stopped to attend a de-briefing on an operation to protect vulnerable children that was carried out at the weekend, Ms Smith said there were now more officers on the streets of the city than in 1997. She pointed to a further 375 officers than there were 12 years ago, adding there were now more than 300 police community support officers on the streets who didn’t exist at that time.

She told the Daily Echo how Hampshire had set itself an increased budget because of an increase in government funding, adding: “At the end of the day the chief constable and the police authority have to make their own decisions about how they deal with that funding.”

Her comments came just a week after Hampshire Police Federation warned that the force’s frontline operation was “at breaking point”. At the same time it faces saving a further £30m over the next three years.

Ms Smith’s visit coincided with a meeting with some of the city’s partnership agencies who were involved in Operation Staysafe which took place across the weekend. The scheme was rolled out in the city and 26 other areas across the UK. Its primary aim was to steer children away from potential crime and disorder by returning them to their parents or a safe location.