THE Liberal Democrat candidate for the Cumbria Police and Crime Commissioner has launched her campaign in South Lakeland.

Lorraine Birchall says she will be fighting for a fair funding deal for rural police forces in the face of government changes.

The web developer and management consultant was at Kendal’s Birdcage last week collecting signatures to back her campaign.

Changes to the police funding formula are expected to be brought back later this year, having initially been postponed following errors in the government’s figures in November 2015.

Under the original proposals, rural forces were due to lose out on significant amounts of funding compared to urban ones, due to the criteria used.

Loraine has lived in Cumbria for 40 years, and has a teenage son. Her father, brother and former husband have all served as special constables for Cumbria Police.

She has previously worked at BAE Systems in Barrow, and she also serves as a tenant board member for South Lakes Housing.

Loraine’s priorities for the police include improving safety for women including taking domestic violence more seriously, tackling crimes against small businesses and ensuring a visible policing presence on our streets. She also wants to address the growing problem of cyber-crime.

Loraine commented: “I want to restore the trust of Cumbrians in our Police Service, but to do that we need to have the resources to keep our county safe.

“The government last year decided to postpone the funding formula changes which would have drastically reduced Cumbria Police’s funding.

“However, these changes are still on the cards. I will be campaigning to ensure that rural areas like Cumbria are given a fair funding deal.”

Elections for Police and Crime Commissioners will be on May 5 2016.