A POLICE chairman has hit out at Theresa May after she said there was 'no direct correlation between certain crimes and police numbers'.

The most recent deaths caused by knife crime have seen 17-year-olds Jodie Chesney, who was a scout, and Yousef Ghaleb Makki die at the hands of knife attackers. At a Cabinet meeting on the issue of knife crime on Tuesday, Mrs May said the killings of Jodie and Yousef last week were "absolutely appalling" and told ministers her thoughts and sympathies were with the teenagers' families.

Her official spokesman said she had tasked the Home Office with co-ordinating an urgent series of Cabinet-level ministerial meetings and engagements to accelerate the work Government is doing to support local councils and police."

Gloucestershire Police Federation Chairman Mike Harrison said.“To say The Prime Minister is deluded is an understatement,”

“She is not facing the truth or taking accountability for her actions as Home Secretary and then Prime Minister and those of the Government. The cuts made have led to this violent crime crisis in the country.

“Instead of taking responsibility for the cuts - Theresa May is burying her head in the sand.”

In 2010, there were 143,734 police officers in England and Wales. There are now 122,395. That's 21,339 fewer. In 2010 Gloucestershire Police had 1,309 police officers. There are now have 1,071. That's 238 fewer.

According to Government statistics there’s been a 12% increase in police recorded offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in the past year - to 39,332 offences. It’s at the highest level since comparable data began to be collected in April 2010.

Latest Home Office figures show that in the year ending March 2018, there were 279,598 stops and searches conducted by police officers in England and Wales.