New government money for police recruitment has been hailed as a ‘lifeline’ by the Police Federation of England Wales (PFEW).

Today the Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid unveiled his spending plans for the next year in his ‘Spending Round’ announced in the Commons.

The review included £750m in the first year to recruit 20,000 police officers, as well as an additional £45m for this year to enable the recruitment campaign to start immediately – with Mr Javid pledging that 2,000 officers will be in place by March next year.

Reacting to the announcement PFEW National Chair John Apter said: “The government promised to recruit additional officers and today they have put their money where their mouths are by announcing dedicated money which will enable forces to start recruiting straight away.

"For our dedicated and hard-working colleagues, the effect that a genuine increase in police officer numbers will provide cannot be underestimated. This is a lifeline that is so desperately needed.

"What must be ensured is that this initial momentum is maintained, and the full 20,000 uplift of extra officers is achieved. These must be genuine extra officers. And now we need to see more detail of how and when all of this will be achieved", said Mr Apter.

The Chancellor announced a raft of spending measures totalling £13.8bn including spending on the wider Criminal Justice System incorporating:

• A formal review in to the powers and resources needed to tackle Serious and Organised Crime ahead of the full Spending Review next year
• £30 million of new funding to tackle online child exploitation
• 5% real terms increase in the resource budget for the Ministry of Justice
• £80 million for the Crown Prosecution Service
• And an increase of 10,000 prison places

However, there was no additional funding to increase protection for police officers.

"I am disappointed that there was no mention of ring-fenced funding for Taser. We know this is a vital piece of safety equipment that police officers and the public want officers to have access to. And the sickening series of attacks on police officers over recent weeks has brought into sharp focus the dangers they face on a daily basis," said Mr Apter.

"The Chancellor announced that there will be a full review what resources the police service needs and providing increased access to Taser must be at the heart of this.

"We will continue to campaign and lobby for that to happen. It cannot be a matter of if – but when," he said.

The Spending Round also included new money for Brexit, transport, education and health.