Free Republic

Nearly 900 police stations have closed in England and Wales in the past 14 years, according to government figures obtained by The Daily Telegraph, while the vast majority of those still operating are only open to the public for limited hours. A survey of opening times on the websites of a dozen forces, with more than 400 stations, shows that only 24 — fewer than six per cent — are advertised as open 24 hours a day. Most close during the night. The police service's retreat from open-door access at the times when criminals, particularly drunken thugs, are most active...