NEWLY elected Police Federation chair John Apter warned today that the British public is being “failed” and will “suffer more and more” in future because resources are insufficient to meet demand.

Mr Apter told the Independent that policing in some areas was “broken” and government cuts had created a “crisis.”

“We are moving into an area where some crimes will not be investigated, whereas two to five years ago they were,” he said.

The Metropolitan Police announced the creation of a new “crime assessment policy” last year, which gave officers new guidelines on when to stop investigations.

Details suggested that incidents involving a loss of under £50 would not be investigated, as well as offences where there is no “realistic chance officers will be able to solve it.”

Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott said in response to Mr Apter’s comments that the Tories’ axing of more than 21,000 officers since 2010 was to blame.

“The government must now listen to the Police Federation and forces across this country and give our police the resources they need to keep people safe,” she insisted.

“The next Labour government will restore 10,000 police officers to tackle rising crime.”