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Met's £1.6bn budget for new buildings faces cuts
Benedict Moore-Bridger14.11.08
A MET Police building programme with a budget of £1.6billion has been placed under review because of the global economic crisis, the Evening Standard can reveal.
The Metropolitan Police Authority, the body that oversees the force, is reviewing the scheme to improve police stations across London.
The organisation, which lost £30million in the collapse of Icelandic banks, said the recession meant the plans would be looked at again. Schemes already under way would continue, but longer-term projects were being re-examined, it said. Many buildings used by the force have been labelled "unfit for purpose" by MPA officials.
A budget of about £1.4billion was proposed for the Met's capital works programme, which was increased to £1.6billion last November.
The bulk of the money was understood to be earmarked for building projects. Firms reportedly working for the Met include EC Harris, McBains Cooper and Davis Langdon. Olympic security costs are also covered by the spending plan, but the MPA said this would not be affected.
A spokesman for the authority said budgets were increasingly tight, but refused to say whether the building work would be scrapped. He added: "In light of the current financial and property markets, the service is reviewing its seven-year capital programme. The results of that review will impact on the delivery timetable for the MPA and MPS asset management plans."
An asset management plan for each borough outlines the local strategy to improve facilities, including patrol bases, custody centres, Safer Neighbourhoods team bases and offices.
The news raises questions about the Government's pledge to spend its way out of recession, with fears that public spending could be curtailed.
A consultant close to the programme told Building magazine the problem of cost-cutting could affect other forces across the country. The source said: "The worry is this will be replicated elsewhere. The chances are other police forces have similar problems."
A report into the capital works programme is now expected next spring.
