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UK Parliament expected to grill PM Cameron for police cuts in the wake of rioting

PM Cameron will face tough questions

British Prime Minister David Cameron is set to come under renewed pressure to reverse the coalition government's police cuts in the wake of riots sweeping the country.

The Prime Minister has already faced calls, including from London mayor Boris Johnson, to halt the coalition's cuts to police budgets.

The Guardian quoted ministerial sources demanding the Home Office rethink the plans after order was only restored to London's streets by putting 16,000 police officers on the frontline.

Mr Cameron will make an emergency statement to Parliament on Thursday after Speaker John Bercow recalled the Commons following widespread looting and violence. MPs are likely to use the debate to press for cuts to be stopped in light of the riots in towns and cities across England.

Meanwhile, The Guardian quoted an anonymous minister saying: “It is manifestly the case that we need police numbers and effective deployment of officers that generates public confidence. There are inevitably pressures on spending. But you need to run the numbers through the system to make sure you do not leave an exposed flank.”

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper reacted angrily to the report, saying: “For 10 months we have told the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary their 20% frontloaded cuts to the police were unsustainable and were taking huge risks with law and order.

”They have repeatedly refused to reconsider the cuts and have refused to listen to warnings from the police and communities up and down the country.

“It is staggering and utterly shameful if it has taken these appalling events for ministers to start waking up to what everyone else has known all along: more police on the streets makes them safer and not only at times like this.”

Home Secretary Theresa May defended the cuts, telling ITV News: ”It's necessary that as a country, as a Government, we have a credible plan to deal with the (budget) deficit, which we do. That means we are seeing police budgets being cut as other budgets are being cut. We know money can be taken out of police forces without affecting them doing their job of protecting the public and cutting crime”.

Meanwhile Britain seems to have has its first calm night Wednesday after four straight nights of riots that left parts of London and other cities looking like war zones.

Police and witnesses report just minor incidents as thousands of riot police fill the streets of London, Manchester, Liverpool, and Birmingham. PM Cameron has authorized police to use water cannons and rubber bullets, which were used in Northern Ireland, but never in mainland Britain. He says a “fightback” is under way to restore law and order.

Hundreds of youths, many saying they are sick of unemployment and cuts in government help went on a rampage burning buildings and cars, looted stores, smashing windows, and attacking police. The violence was touched off by the police shooting death last week of a 29-year-old man in London's economically depressed Tottenham neighborhood.

Police have arrested more than 1,100 people since Saturday. The youngest suspect is 11 years old. Many of the riot victims are small business owners who say they have taken up weapons to protect their property.

Birmingham police opened a murder investigation Wednesday when three men were run over by a car and killed apparently while trying to protect their neighborhood from looters. Police have a suspect in custody.