These days, most police departments face financial restrictions tighter than their handcuffs, but apparently nobody told this to the English.
Police in Britain have spent $30 million to pump up their fleets of unmarked cars, including many luxury vehicles destined for officers and desk staff. Taxpayer money has paved the way for these acquisitions, under the guise of improving performance for undercover activities.
The worst offenders of vehicle spending include the West Midlands, Lancashire, and Surrey police departments. West Midlands lead the charge with $7.5 million in vehicle expenditures over three years; enough money to buy over 180 Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer vehicles, the standard of the British police forces.
Instead, the department purchased some new Jaguar XF and Audi A6 sedans, both of which retail for over $50,000. Surrey Police followed suit with a new A6, as well as a BMW X5. Cheshire Police are reported to have used BMW 330 sedans in their motor pool, with Lancashire favoring the Mercedes E-Class for their duties.
We’d like to think that English getaway drivers are F1-quick, but this recent story has "abuse of power" written all over it.
