THE majority of people in the county would prefer Kent to retain their own police force.

Kent Police Authority (KPA) was told at a meeting on Wednesday that almost four out of five people do not want their police service to merge with others under Home Office proposals to create new strategic regional forces.

Kent Police must submit its case by December 23 after evaluating five different options, two of which would see it remaining as a stand-alone force, while others include merging with Sussex, Surrey, or both.

But consultation with residents in the county has returned 78 per cent support for Kent Police to remain as a stand-alone force. People against the idea of merging with another force were worried about a loss of identity, a drop in performance levels, and a lack of accountability.

The people questioned in focus groups and a citizen panel survey were also concerned about the cost implications of a merger. The financial cost of merging with another force is estimated at £91.4million over 10 years, while the cost of remaining as a stand-alone force would be around £1.1million over the same period.

Consultation also included a range of councillors, parish councils and other community organisations. Meetings were also held with MPs, district councils, stakeholders and other groups.

Ann Barnes, KPA chair, said: "People, partners and stakeholders tell us they are overwhelmingly in favour of keeping Kent Police working for the people of Kent.

"These views support the authority’s opinion that Kent is big enough as a force to meet the full range of policing needs across the county and the cost of merging with other forces would be far too high.

"We can have the best of both worlds in Kent - our own police force that is working in local communities with local people and one that is well placed to keep us as safe as possible from major crimes and the threat of terrorism.

"We do not need to merge and the feedback from the Home Office is very encouraging."