The funding of rural police forces will be the subject of a protest at 10 Downing Street today.

Independent Police Commissioner candidates from across the country, including Dorset’s Martyn Underhill, will lobby the government for more cash.

In a joint statement they said: “We oppose the historic underfunding of rural areas and the allocation of police cuts in an arbitrary manner.”

Mr Underhill added: “Dorset is the fourth lowest-funded force in the country and I aim to challenge that ethos.”