Police bosses told to make savings

Senior management at Merseyside Police have been told to look at where they can cut costs.

The force needs to cut spending by £4.1m over the next year as public spending is slashed.

Chief Superintendent John Martin is the new Area Commander for the Wirral and has been out this week meeting people in his new patch.

Speaking to Heart he said he is looking at spending: "all senior managers in the organisation have been ask to look at what the implications are and there's lots of discussions still to have and we don't know the details yet.

"I think what we're going to do and what the Chief Constable is committed that we continue to be is to deliver the best possible service that we can within the cuts that everyone is facing across the country."

Mr Martin has been with Merseyside Police for 25 years now, the majority of his service has been in Uniform Operations and he is highly experienced in public order situations and firearms management.

He is also one of the Force's on-call firearms commanders.

In 2009, John was promoted to Chief Superintendent and was posted as Head of Force Operations at HQ prior to taking on the role of Area Commander at the Wirral on July 5.

John has already been out and about in the communities where he will be heading up the policing and will be continuing to meet residents and partners in the coming months.

He said: "I am delighted to be taking over the reigns as the Area Commander for Wirral.

"Crime has been falling across the borough and I will be looking to build on the successes already achieved.

"There is an excellent team in Wirral and I am looking forward to working with my officers and engaging with the Wirral community to continue to ensure the area is a safe and pleasant place to live and work."