Essex residents are being urged to join the battle to save Essex Police from a merger with other counties.
Essex Police Authority chairman Robert Chambers said the move could push up the police portion of council tax and make it harder to respond to local needs.
A public consultation exercise is being launched tomorrow on options which include merging with Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire.
The Government claims merged forces would be able to cope better with major crimes and terrorist threats.
Mr Chambers said Essex's new Chief Constable, Roger Baker, was responding to residents' demands to see more police on the streets and faster responses to crime calls. He feared a merger could jeopardise this.
He also pointed out the police bill in Essex was lower than in the rest of the eastern region. Mr Chambers said: "The Government should look at the whole system and set up a national anti-terrorist squad without interfering with county police forces."
Mr Chambers wants residents to comment via the website www.essex.police.uk
The Gazette is backing the public consultation initiative with a simple telephone voteline in tomorrow's paper.
More in today's Evening Gazette
Published Wednesday, November 23, 2005
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