Almost 450 people have signed an online petition to save Caerphilly town police station from closure and Lindsay Whittle, leader of Caerphilly County Borough Council, is urging more people to sign up.
Councillor Whittle, who is also Plaid’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Caerphilly, said: “I’m pleased at the response of the public to the online petition and I would urge as many people as possible to sign up and send a message out that Caerphilly station must not be shut.
“The more support we can gather the greater the possibility of saving Caerphilly Police Station.
“The future of Caerphilly Police Station is under threat as a result of savings which Gwent Police Authority will have to make. But those savings cannot be at the expense of Caerphilly Police Station which serves a population of more than 30,000.
“I want the Home Office to provide more funding to the authority for policing needs.”
The party revealed in October that 25 Gwent Police stations are on a list slated for closure, five of them in Caerphilly County Borough.
It has been reported that stations in Caerphilly town, Fochriw, Nelson, Abertridwr and Lansbury Park are under threat and could be replaced by “mobile units”.
The threat of closures comes in the face of a reported £10 million funding gap next year for Gwent Police.
Despite the need for cuts to save cash, Chief Constable Mike Giannasi has said decisions to close any police station have not been made.
Labour’s Caerphilly AM Jeff Cuthbert has previously labelled the petition “misleading and irresponsible” and has also said there are no immediate plans to close the station.
People can add their names to the petition at www.saveourstation.co.uk
