Tony Blair has promised to provide a policing team to pound the beat in every neighbourhood in Oxfordshire.

The Prime Minister's pledge follows an increase in the number of uniformed wardens with powers to clamp down on antisocial behaviour.

The Government will spend an extra £340m in the next three years to increase the number of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) across the country to 24,000.

The extra PCSOs are yet to be allocated but Thames Valley currently has fewer than most other areas.

In November, the announcement of funding for 60 more PCSOs was met with disappointment because Thames Valley had been hoping for 193.

The force will receive only about £2.6m of the £9m Home Office grant it wanted.

But the Prime Minister this week announced a massive roll out of the new breed of officers, who will supplement police and help create dedicated Neighbourhood Policing Teams.

The announcement was welcomed by Thames Valley Police. Insp Jon Smith, in charge of the PCSO scheme in Oxfordshire, said news that £340m would be made available was "extra flesh on the bones", but it was still not known how much money Thames Valley would receive.

The Conservatives and the Police Federation claim the Government is "policing on the cheap".

PCSOs receive less training and have limited powers. They can issue fixed penalty notices for low-level offences such as dog fouling, dropping litter, riding on footpaths, fly-tipping and graffiti.

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