With continuing protests against government cuts expected, police budgets cut and magistrates courts closed, Nerys Evans AM has warned that 2011 could become a year of public disruption.
Recent weeks have seen violent protests take place across the UK with greater sweeping cuts set to continue from the Conservative and Lib Dem coalition in the next year. In addition to this massive cut backs will lead to hundreds of police officers in Wales being made redundant, whilst magistrates courts charged with the delivery of local justice are being shut. Nerys Evans, the Plaid Cymru AM for Mid and West Wales, has issued her concern that this could lead to a perfect storm of public discontent.
Nerys Evans AM said:
“I do have concerns that over the course of next year we could see some very distressing scenes. We have already seen tens of thousands of protestors take to the streets against this government, unfortunately on occasions with violent consequences. With such savage and speedy cuts being put in place I fear this could be a continuing trend.
“When you consider the fact that many hundreds of police staff in Wales are expected to be made redundant, including frontline officers, policing this discontent, and protecting the public becomes an even greater concern. With Dyfed Powys Police Authority already expressing fears that they will lose between 250-300 staff because of Tory-Lib Dem cut backs you see the size of the challenge facing the police, especially when traditionally during a recession with high unemployment crime would be expected to go up.
“All this of course is against a backdrop of a large number of magistrates courts being closed in Wales. It is clear that the ConDem government in Westminster could be setting the scene for a chaotic year. They do not care about the ordinary person who is feeling the impact of their cuts and they certainly do not care about crime or justice.”
