"Slashing Police numbers" ? So, where's the originality in that? I have personal experience when, as a Police Officer, of being on shift with literally no more than a handful of us, and having to cover areas with populations of at least 100,000 depending on us.
On the other hand, I have also been stationed in a city whose main crime area was saturated by Police patrols.
Nowadays, there are virtually no Road Traffic units left, most of them were absorbed back into so called "ordinary policing", but that was to try to replace Officers who had been already lost to Forces due to cutbacks etc.
A serious and swingeing reduction in top heavy Police management would undoubtedly help. For example, who and what is ACPO? What meaningful Police function do they actually perform? Getting rid of that lot would probably finance a couple of hundred more "real" cops for a start. There are far too many Police personnel manning desks in "nicks", seeing out their time, instead of out on the streets where Joe Public expect them to be.
Coppers on the Beat will not solve society's ills, but there again, how can anyone measure the deterrent factor which it would bring with it. Speaking of which, I do, however, subscribe to the view that the re-introduction of capital punishment would act as a significant deterrent to would be murderers. After all, they are presently faced with the proverbial life of Riley if banged up, whereas the possibility of being topped must surely persuade any such scr%tes to think again? Simplistic, but very effective.