THE region's deputy police and crime commissioner has fired a warning to Chancellor George Osborne - urging him to spare the force from deeper cuts.

Barrie Sheldon has urged him to see "good sense" when he unveils his Comprehensive Spending Review later this month.

Some Government departments have struck provisional agreements in place to reduce their spending by around 30 per cent over the next four years including transport, local government and the environment.

With overseas aid, schools and health protected there are fears police forces could take a heavy brunt of the future public spending reductions, with a 25 per cent cut putting more than 22,000 front line officer jobs nationwide potentially at risk.

Mr Sheldon told your Worcester News he feels West Mercia Police's position is better than many other forces, but has appealed to Mr Osborne to consider the risks of overseeing a hefty cut.

He said: "Our sensible financial management puts us in a better position than many forces currently - but we are all awaiting the outcome of the Government’s spending review.

"That will spell out exactly how big the challenges will be in the coming years for policing.

"For the time being, I can only say that I hope good sense will prevail in that respect."

In 2012 the force launched a plan to cut 140 police officer jobs, and has since given some officers Ipad-style 'Tetratab' devices to help keep them on the front line more often.

Last year it even started to recruit again, saying the success of the alliance with Warwickshire Police, which led to the loss of around 661 jobs overall, had worked well.

In November last year both forces started to consult over shedding a combined £30 million by 2018, but the end detail largely depends on what funding comes down from the Government.

The reductions are part of a plan to get the nation's finances back into a surplus by the end of this parliament.

Mr Osborne said: "I surplus will make our country more resilient, safe and secure.

"It means that next time we have the money to help us through the tough times when the storms come."