BOLTON will not lose one of its three neighbourhood police teams in the latest round of cuts, bosses have said.

Policing minister Mike Penning announced in parliament on Wednesday that all forces' budgets would be slashed by a further five per cent.

This constitutes £28 million of cuts for Greater Manchester Police, which means the force is facing a £70 million funding black hole.

Fears have been voiced that one of Bolton's three neighbourhood policing teams could be axed to cut costs, with the other two stretched to cover bigger areas.

But Ch Supt Shaun Donnellan, Bolton's most senior police officer, says the cuts will not lead to a shake-up of community policing in the town.

He also said the fresh savings should not be a "cause for concern" for Bolton people as operations will still run "as normal".

Police and crime commissioner Tony Lloyd has adopted a different stance, saying that the "irresponsible" cuts have put "communities at risk.

Ch Supt Donnellan said: "If anything is done with neighbourhood teams it won't be anything to do with the cuts.

"It will be down to a local decision. There are three in Bolton and two in Wigan currently. That is a separate conversation from the cuts.

"I will champion neighbourhood policing for as long as I'm in office because I think it delivers better service to people."

Nevertheless, GMP must make £157 million of cuts over the next three years, having already lost 1,100 officers since 2010 with the loss of a further 800 to come.

But Ch Supt Donnellan said: "I don't think there is any cause for concern because I am able to move my resources around.

"People should be reassured that things will run as normal.

"We will work closer than ever with our partners, such as the fire service, paramedics and Bolton Council, to provide all services across the borough.

"I am fairly positive about things.

"There will be growth again and it is about making the best of the resources that we have got for now."

Nearly £12 million of the £28 million being clawed back from GMP's budget will be used to fund the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) and the City of London Police.

Mr Lloyd said: “It’s unacceptable and disappointing that the ordinary, hard-working people of Greater Manchester are once again bearing the brunt of these irresponsible funding cuts.

“We simply cannot cope with further cuts – the money is running out. The government is putting the safety of our communities at risk.”

He added: “That ministers think it’s acceptable to claw back money to pay for schemes that will be of little benefit to local people and to shore up a complaints system that is in dire need of complete overhaul is ridiculous."