Norfolk PCC Lorne Green sorry for offending PCSOs

Conservative Lorne Green beat Labour's Dr Chris Jones by about 10,000 votes when he was elected PCC

Norfolk's police and crime commissioner (PCC) has apologised for offending police community support officers by saying he would not employ more of them if he had "all the money in the world".

Lorne Green made the comment at a meeting on Tuesday, as reported by the Eastern Daily Press.

Last month Chief Constable Simon Bailey announced plans to axe 150 Norfolk PCSOs.

Mr Green said he was "sorry" for his choice of words.

'Unintended hurt'

In a statement, he said: "I am sorry for my choice of words with regards to the proposal in relation to PCSOs; I did not choose them well.

"I apologise for any unintended hurt I may have caused. I have, throughout, been mindful of the pain and uncertainty caused by the proposal to put the PCSO role at risk."

He said he was "heartened" to hear that more than 40 PCSOs had expressed an interest in becoming police constables.

"I will continue to closely monitor the progress of these efforts," he said.