David Thompson, freshly arrived in the West Midlands as deputy chief constable after three years as Assistant Chief Constable at Greater Manchester Police, said until the details of the comprehensive spending review were announced it was hard to predict its impact on the number of his officers. Plans had been put in place to protect front line delivery. His comments came as Sir Hugh Orde, president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, said the current level of police officers was not “sustainable”.