PRIVATE police officers could be employed by Southend Council in the wake of major cuts to Essex Police.

Mike Assenheim, Independent councillor for Shoebury and spokesman for the independent group, will propose the reintroduction of the Uniformed Southend Borough Patrol at December’s full council meeting.

The security force used to be active in the late Nineties and the early part of this century.

When it was scrapped, many members of the team went on to become PCSOs or special constables with Essex Police.

Mr Assenheim said: “We are about to lose many of our PCSOs and have an ever decreasing police personnel.

“In some parts of Essex residents are paying for private security firms to patrol the streets.

“Some of these firms are unregulated and could cause more problems.

“Therefore, if we in Southend have properly regulated uniformed security, I am sure the people of the borough and our businesses would be appreciative and would be prepared to pay a small increase in the council tax.”

The full motion has not yet been drawn up, so it is not known what powers the proposed taxpayer-funded patrol would have.

Council leader Ron Woodley said he would wait to hear the full motion before making a decision on the proposal.

He believes local authorities should not take on policing roles.

Mr Woodley said: “It may well come down to costs and whether we can expect ratepayers to pay for something the police should be doing.

“If the police and crime commissioner feels the police need a higher precept to pay for the force, then why hasn’t it been done already? That’s been Nick Alston’s job.

“It would be very difficult to start up a uniformed team.

“Let’s see what the motion says, but my feeling is that the police are there and we should fund them.”

Dave Bright, from Southend, worked for Essex Police for 33 years and rose to the rank of detective superintendent before retiring in 1999. He doesn’t believe a private police force would work.

He said: “The only people to police are the police.

“Those who do policing have got to be lawfully sworn to the Crown, then they will have all the powers they need.

“I applaud Mr Assenheim on trying to get something done, but what happens when they arrest someone?

“Or someone gets punched in the face?

“Would they have their own cell block? They would have to call the police.”

ESSEX Police announced a wave of cuts earlier this month, including:

Budget to be cut by £63million by 2019/20

Fifty of the county’s 80 police stations to close

Pitsea and Billericay police stations to close

Rayleigh and Canvey police stations to close their front counters used by the public

New, cheaper police headquarters to be built

All but 60 PCSOs to go

Top cop wary of handing over responsibility

SOUTHEND’S district commander believes the private force could work if members operated alongside Essex Police officers.

Essex Police have proposed that councils will have to pick up jobs as a result of reduced numbers of officers, with antisocial behaviour being one of the tasks earmarked for community safety partnerships.

Chief Insp Simon Anslow is wary of giving up too much responsibility to other authorities.

He said: “If the council made a decision to bring back a uniformed team to work on matters that fall within its area of responsibility, then we would work alongside it.

“But I am keen not to give the impression that we would absolve ourselves of our responsibilities and just dump them on the council, because it is facing significant financial challenges itself.

“What we are looking at doing is trying to find better ways of working together to find and spot these places where our demand overlaps with the council. With antisocial behaviour, where criminality is a driving factor, then I still say that is something the police will need to take the lead on.

“Where it is predominantly noise, general nuisance, littering or quality of life issues then I would say the council would take the lead in those matters.

“Our desire to keep people safe has not changed.

“We have just got slightly fewer tools in the tool box with which to do it.”