KIRKLEES councillors want to see how much communities are prepared to pay to crack crime.
As a West Yorkshire Police Authority review gets underway, Liberal Democrat Clr Geoffrey Alvy said the apparent gulf developing between the public and the police could be bridged.
Clr Alvy said: "For far too long the local police forces which cover the Kirklees area have been obliged to direct their resources into meeting targets set by the Home Office."
He said local policing issues had suffered because of that.
"The fear of crime is an important issue and the current review must play its part in addressing it," he explained.
"We are determined to support our local police forces by allowing them to set their own policing targets, so that they can address policing matters which are relevant to local needs and local people."
Clr Ian Rutter, Liberal Democrat spokesman on the West Yorkshire Police Authority added that the fight against crime came at a price.
But he said the bottom line was that West Yorkshire Police were under-funded by central government to the tune of £25m compared to similar forces.
He said: "There is a growing demand for more policing and a better police service.
"This can only be achieved by increased funding to the police.
"Central government is refusing to do this, therefore the question is how much is the council taxpayer willing to pay?"
Over the next few weeks the West Yorkshire Police Authority will be setting its annual budget.
Over the past two years, 4% of the Council Tax increase has been just to cover a higher West Yorkshire Police precept.
Clr Rutter is now calling on the public to let him know what they think about policing issues and levies.
