A senior Cumbrian politician says recent cuts to the county’s policing have led to a significant rise in crime.

Tony Lywood, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Copeland, refers to the latest government statistics which show violent crime and robbery have gone up by just under a third in Cumbria.

“Frankly, how the police cope is a mystery to me,” he said. “There are fewer and fewer police officers on our streets and very few police stations left open in our constituency.

“Cleator Moor closed, Keswick closed, Millom closed, Egremont closed. The police do an amazing and sterling job with less and less resources available to them.”

The latest report from the Office for National Statistics shows there are now 144 fewer police officers in Cumbria than there were in 2010, a drop of 12 per cent. Figures reveal that violent crime has increased by 28 per cent and robbery by 30 per cent. The county has also seen 18 police stations close since 2011.

Mr Lywood added: “The Home Office has been cutting police funding in real terms since 2015, the figures released recently show violent crime has risen dramatically.

“Anyone can see that this Tory Government has broken its promise to protect funding when police funding has, in fact, been cut in real terms.

“The 50 new officers announced a few weeks ago needs to be 200! We’re being treated like the poor relation up here.”

A Cumbria Police spokesman said: “Cumbria Constabulary has seen a rise in recorded crime, in line with other forces nationally. “This is due, in part, to changes in the way some offences such as violent crime are recorded. Violence against person offences now include a wide range of offences including violence without injury. “A second factor in the rise in recorded crime is the welcome increase in public confidence which means more people coming forward to report offences.

“The constabulary has been open about the closure of police stations in recent years as a result of austerity. The funding saved has allowed the constabulary to retain frontline officers and staff whilst investing in technology which allows officers greater flexibility in when and where they work.”