A VITAL decision, which could affect county policing, is expected to be made today.

Gloucestershire Police Authority members are to decide about police funding – but it could mean a cut in front line policing.

They will choose to either increase the police's share of the council tax by 2.94 per cent or opt for no increase and take a Government grant instead.

If the increase is agreed, it will mean a rise for band D households of £5.87 per year, for the police's share of the bill. But if it is not, the police fear they could be forced to make cuts in front line policing.

Chief Constable Tony Melville said the force had already made huge cutbacks and needed to raise its share of the council tax by 2.94 per cent in 2012/13 to avoid affecting frontline policing.

He has warned that failure to do this could take the force to "a metaphorical cliff edge".

But the Government wants to keep council tax rises down and has offered to pay the police £1.3 million this year, in return for not increasing its share of the council tax.

Mr Melville insists the increase, as agreed last year as part of the authority's four-year financial strategy, should go ahead. He says failure to do so could leave the police needing to save an extra £1.3 million a year after 2013 as future council tax rises might not be agreed by the Police and Crime Commissioner.

He said the £1.3m would be the tipping point because the force had to cut its annual budget of £103m by £24m.

Unison, the Superintendents' Association and the Police Federation have all written to the police authority expressing concerns about the proposal to freeze council tax. Gavin Thomas, detective chief superintendent at Gloucestershire Constabulary will be speaking on behalf of the police at today's meeting.

Ahead of the meeting, the police authority's chairman Rob Garnham said: "We have asked for two options to be presented to us, both aiming to meet the challenge facing us.

"The bottom line is that whichever option is chosen, they effectively mean the same thing, except the zero tax increase option brings £1.3m of Government money into the county – thereby maintaining the same level of funding as originally planned for this year. The other builds up the level of council tax-based funding for policing."