Top cops’ shock claim that hunts for missing people waste resources as bobbies on beat numbers hit 30-year low

LEAKED documents sent from police chiefs to the Treasury reveal shock claims that forces can't cope with further cuts and may need to stop looking for missing people.

Chief constables and crime tsars warned ministers that £620 million a year is being spent tracking down missing people - many of whom have run away from hospitals or children's homes - and that police resources are being stretched.

They explained constables are forced to wait around in A&E departments for more than 3 hours at a time with injured patients because there are not enough ambulances or doctors.

According to the top-secret briefing, uncovered by the Mail on Sunday, police forces are being used to 'fill the gaps' in struggling public services.

Allegedly more 999 calls reporting violent crime have risen alongside issues such as sex abuse, fraud and terrorism.

The document also revealed that the true number of frontline officers walking the streets is at it's lowest for 30 years and police bosses are having a tough time finding enough detectives to lead elite units in tackling serious crime.

New figures published from the House of Commons show the number of bobbies on the beat was 118,779 in March this year - the 'lowest level since 1985' if those on career breaks or maternity leave are considered.

This highlights a fall of 19,670 officers since 2010 as police lost £2.2 billion in Home Office funding - and fresh cuts of 1.3 per cent a year are set to hit the forces further.

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire Paddy Tipping last night said: "The police can't do everything and there has to be a debate about their priorities.

"If you've got professional bodies running hospitals and care homes and people are going missing, questions should be asked about them."

Steve White, chairman of the police Federation, added: The police are left picking up the pieces where we should be concentrating on keeping the public safe."

Former Office Minister David Mellor dismissed the concerns, saying the police could easily carry on their core functions by scrapping some senior ranks or avoiding wasteful investigations.

Mr Mellor said: "The police are very badly run and instead of getting their own house in order, they'd rather scare the public."

A 16-page report, written by both the National Police Chiefs Council and Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, highlighted the concerns of authorities over the burden on "non-crime" work.

Forces carry out an estimated 250,000 investigations into missing people per year.

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