THE Liberal Democrat for Dudley North has called for more police funding after he waited eight hours for police to arrive after he reported a crime.

Ian Flynn, who is contesting the highly marginal seat, said Boris Johnson's election pledge to increase police numbers by 20,000 was only replacing the cuts that have been made to the police since 2010 by the Conservatives.

He said he witnessed a motorbike theft outside his house in the early hours of Sunday morning but police did not arrive until 10.30am.

Mr Flynn said: It all happened so fast, and I was shocked at how young the perpetrators were. Once I realised what was happening and made known to them that they’d been caught in the act, I went inside to dial 999.

"What was really disappointing was that the police didn’t turn up until 10.30am, eight hours later, despite being reassured twice that they were ‘blue-lighted’ and on their way."

The parliamentary hopeful said that the experience outside his home served as a further reminder that police need more support.

West Midlands Police has lost £175 million from its budget and 2,000 officers since 2010, while stations in Dudley, Halesowen and Stourbridge have been closed.

Mr Flynn added: "I don’t blame the brave officers on the streets, but the cuts have gone too far, to the point where we can no longer feel safe, and know that the police will attend when a crime has been committed."

He is calling for police funding to be returned to 'acceptable' levels and for a police station to return to 'every town'.

Ian Flynn is contesting Dudley North against Labour, the Conservatives and Green Party. A full list of candidates can be found here.