Berwick's Lib Dem MP Alan Beith has voiced his concerns over policing in rural Northumberland. Speaking after figures were released which show that more than 40 police stations have closed in the North since Labour came to power in 1997, MP Alan Beith said:
"Northumbria has kept more police stations open than some other forces but it is essential to make sure that the public have good contact points in every community and that people feel that the police officers are part of that community, not part of a distant organisation.
"We also have a problem that at night arrested people may be transported from rural centres like Berwick and Hexham to Bedlington, many miles away, because local police stations are not being used to the full."
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