POLICE officers will be forced to abandon some of their current responsibilities to focus on fighting crime, it has been claimed.

Robert Chambers, chairman of Essex Police Authority, was speaking after Wednesday’s drastic spending cuts.

The county’s force will have to make £50million of cuts by 2014/15, in line with the Government’s spending review, and Mr Chambers said there was “no question of a doubt” some jobs would be axed to achieve this.

He said continuing to share resources with Kent Police would help the force to make some of the savings.

But he claimed police officers would have to stick to crime fighting and leave some matters they currently dealt with to other agencies.

Mr Chambers did not go into detail about what he meant, but nationally there has been speculation police will no longer deal with drunks, the homeless and possibly even anti-social behaviour.

He added: “Over the past ten to 20 years, police have taken up so many things that, perhaps, we as a police service shouldn’t be doing.

“We will do the law enforcement, but other agencies, who are our partners, will have to take on some of those things.

“For example, if somebody has a problem, whatever that problem is, they think police can solve it – but we can’t.

“We haven’t got the manpower and police are not specialists in everything.”

However, on a positive note, Mr Chambers said the force was using the cuts as an opportunity to look at the future of policing in Essex.

He continued: “To me, this is an opportunity to reshape the police service.

“The police service is no different to everything else – it does some things well and other things not quite so well.

“We have an opportunity over the next four years to maybe even improve the police service.”

Some experts fear the cuts could see 40,000 police posts axed in England and Wales by 2015.

COUNCIL tax could be frozen for the first time in decades.

The coalition Government has promised Essex spending authorities more than £18million in grants, if they freeze or lower bills next year.

If they do, they will receive funding from next April equivalent to raising this year’s council tax bill by 2.5 per cent.

The Treasury has set aside £650million to help local authorities in England freeze council tax next year.

David Finch, Essex county councillor responsible for finance, said he could make no promises.

Robert Chambers, chairman of Essex Police Authority, said: “We had already made up our mind it would be frozen, but if the Government wants to give us extra money to cover inflation, that will be great.”

Tony Hedley, chairman of Essex Fire Authority, said: “It appears it could be in our benefit to set a zero per cent increase, if we will get 2.5 per cent back from the Government.”

Paul Smith, councillor responsible for resources on Colchester Council, said: “It will be Colchester Council’s intention to have a zero per cent rise in council tax next year, so we are certain we will qualify for the rebate.”

Under the proposal, Essex County Council could get an extra £14,446,215, Basildon Council £399,359, Southend Council £1,720,562, Rochford Council £158,777, Castle Point Council £181,056, Thurrock Council £1,422,470, Essex Police £2,129,606 and Fire and Rescue £1,070,608.

FIREFIGHTERS in Essex are willing to work with their boss to find £7.3million of savings.

Chief fire officer David Johnson said the county’s service would have to cut about 13 per cent of its budget following the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review and called on the union to help.

Keith Flynn, secretary of the Essex Fire Brigades Union, said crews, who have been in dispute with the county’s fire service for more than 16 months, would give a lukewarm reception to co-operating with the chief.

Mr Flynn said: “We welcome this change of tune by the chief, but what we actually need is a change of heart.

“Our repeated requests for information about the size and costs of frontline and back-office functions have all been refused or withheld.

“While we cautiously welcome the chief’s public call for co-operation on the coalition Government’s spending cuts, what we actually need to see is a genuine commitment to meaningful talks, mutual respect and openness and transparency of information.

“We shall continue to seek co-operative talks with senior managers and fire authority councillors and we hope they will be forthcoming.”

Mr Johnson has warned funding cuts could lead to more retained fire crews or changing shift patterns, rather than cutting firefighters’ jobs.

He said the service would make about £3million in cuts to back offices, but £4million of savings would have to be found elsewhere.