In thin blue line

control, event stewarding and crowded places protection.

“All these tasks are manpower intensive and great deterrents to crime and disorder, but are a waste of a highly trained officer’s time.”

Since 2010, Greater Manchester Police has lost one in every four of its police officers due to budget cuts - although there has been a slight increase in numbers over the last couple of years.

There are now the equivalent of 6,051 fulltime officers available for duty at the force - down from 8,043 in 2010.

The growth of private security services alongside these cuts has fuelled concerns that the industry is now propping up the police. Senior officers warned private companies should not be seen as a replacement for proper policing. Simon Cole, the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s lead for local policing, said: “Policing is well used to working with private security companies on a daily basis. “These firms should not replace or supplement policing and it is for properly trained officers to intervene when a crime has been committed. The rise since 2012 in private security firms in Greater Manchester

“Where communities wish to fund their own security patrols, they should ensure that they are properly trained and accredited.

“We will work with these personnel in the most appropriate way and reports of crime and evidence provided to police by a third party will be assessed and dealt with.

“There are 44,000 fewer officers and staff involved in policing than there were in 2010.

“Resource within policing is under pressure as forces deal with rising crime, demand that is more complex, and an unprecedented terror threat with fewer officers and staff.

“It is for individual chief constables to manage this within their force, and some have already made it clear that police can only prioritise their resources against the greatest harm.”