POLICE and Crime Commissioner Nick Alston has defended plans to spend around £230,000 on five new employees in his office at a time when Essex Police has to make savings of £48 million.
The new roles that are currently open to applications will add to the number of officials scrutinising police budgets and improving accountability.
Last Thursday Mr Alston announced he was looking to employ an assistant director for performance and scrutiny earning up to £58,416, an assistant director for commissioning on £52,887, an assistant director for public engagement getting £51,630, a financial scrutiny officer on £38,862 and a media and engagement officer on £25,449.
These additional posts come at a time when the Essex Police Marine Unit, which costs £500,000 to patrol 400 miles of coastline, is in danger of being scrapped after severe budget cuts.
This is set against a backdrop of national cuts to both officers and civilian staff, as forces are expected to lose up to 14 per cent of frontline personnel by 2015.
Essex Police have had their budget from central government cut by £48 million over the next three years, meaning they need to make savings of 3.5 per cent over the next two years.
Mr Alston says his office will operate at 20 per cent of the old Police Authority which cost the taxpayer £1.44 milion a year – a PCC budget of £1.15 million.
He told the Chronicle: "I've had some great meetings with the public, but we need to reach more people and make sure that the public opinion is heard more clearly as that is at the heart of what we're about.
"We've taken on more responsibility for commissioning and with this wider scope for holding the police to account, that's why we're looking to take on further professionals to work within the team. Some staff members will be moving on so not all the roles are completely new."
This is not the first time Nick Alston has had to defend his human resources decisions. He hired a deputy in Lindsey Whitehouse, earning £55,000, and Susannah Hancock as an executive director on £80,000, in June.
He earns £80,000 a year and in May employed Stephen Kavanagh as chief constable on a total salary of £192,163 – nearly £50,000 more than the Prime Minister's wage.
Mr Alston added: "Our staff costs will be down from 2009/10 and will be lower than last full financial year.
"We are quite different from the old police authority that was very expensive as they all had allowances and expenses so we've reduced costs and have spent less on a chief executive.
Jonathan Isaby, political director of spending watchdog the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "Police and Crime Commissioners are there to keep a watchful eye on police spending, not to build their own cosy empires.
"Taxpayers elected their PCCs precisely because they wanted to see someone crack down on wasteful spending and unnecessary bureaucracy in the police."
