Premier: Police funding restored

The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service will receive a total of $4.6 million in additional funding during this budget year to boost the country’s response to serious violent crime, Premier McKeeva Bush said.  

Some of that funding will be one-time payments for equipment and supplies, Mr. Bush said. Also, Mr. Bush said he would propose giving $100,000 to Cayman Crime Stoppers to be used as reward money for anonymous tipsters.  

Premier Bush’s announcement was made Monday in the Legislative Assembly following closed-door meetings between lawmakers, Governor Duncan Taylor and RCIPS Commissioner David Baines.  

According to budget records examined by the Caymanian Compass, the funding increase set out by Mr. Bush would essentially restore the RCIPS to budget levels last seen in the 2009/10 fiscal year, when the premier’s government first took office.  

Figures provided by RCIPS earlier this summer indicated there had been a sharp drop in budgeted funds for the police service; from a budget of $36.9 million in the 2009/10 year, to $33.6 million in the 2010/11 year, to $32.9 million in the current budget, the 2011/12 fiscal year.  

However, a closer examination of budget records for the previous fiscal year – 2010/11 which ended on 30 June – shows police actually spent far less than the budgeted $33.6 million, reducing expenditure to $29.8 million, according to actual unaudited budget numbers. Police Commissioner Baines has not responded to Caymanian Compass requests for comment about the further drop in the spending plan that was recorded for last year.  

Premier Bush contributed decreases in police spending to pressure from the United Kingdom to reduce Cayman’s overall government budget.  

A line item examination of the numbers shows that the ‘police services’ budget – essentially the patrol budget for RCIPS – stood at $16.5 million in 2009/10. It was reduced to $13.8 million in the 2010/11 budget, however by the end of the year on 30 June, 2011, government records showed just $12.7 million was spent on police services. That means funds for police patrols dropped by a further $1.1 million during the course of the year compared to what was budgeted.  

In the current budget, the police services expenditure was increased to $15 million.  

The same thing happened to the investigation and detection of crime budget, according to records. In the 2010/11 spending plan, $11.2 million was budgeted for that purpose, but the amount actually spent was $10.4 million, according to government records.  

One area where the police budget increased during the 2010/11 year was in ‘police security services’ provided for government members, Cayman’s law courts, for official delegates and international conferences and for money transfers at the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority.  

At the beginning of 2010/11 nearly $2.5 million was budgeted for those services, although government records show less than $2.2 million was actually spent. In the current 2011/12 budget, police security services costs were set below $1.8 million.  

Crime fighting plans  

In addition to boosting spending allotments, which could take the RCIPS overall budget above $37 million for the first time in more than two years, Mr. Bush said a number of new operational plans were discussed.  

Those included the creation of a new 13-member group call the Tactical Support Group to support the armed police units known as the ‘USG’ or Uniform Support Group. Tactical support officers would be allowed to carry Tasers and other devices for personal protection, Mr. Bush said. This would assist in controlling crime “hotspots” and ensuring public order in volatile areas.  

The Uniform Support Group would increase armed patrols and would train other RCIPS staff in support roles, increasing the unit’s numbers to 45 – effectively doubling the unit’s operating capacity.  

“Once deployed, criminal elements in this city will not be able to run around with impunity like they have been doing,” Mr. Bush said.