BUY TWO MET POLICE AND GET TWO FREE (OFFER ONLY VALID IN HAMPSTEAD)

I recollect many years ago taking a tourist trip in a minibus around Beverly Hills.  The houses of the movie stars were, to use my  teenage son`s description; awesome.  But my J.P.`s eye alighted as much on the number of "ordinary" houses where a signboard was centrally placed with the words "ARMED RESPONSE PATROLS".  My innocent mind metaphorically sighed inwardly at what I perceived was the lowly state American law enforcement must have reached in inverse proportion to the paranoia of rich Californians. Today I read about the rich residents of Hampstead in London contemplating renting their very own dedicated police officers to do what the Metropolitan Police apparently fails to do: namely patrol to a degree which gives confidence to  the local population  that life and property are to some degree protected from a breach of the peace which is, after all, the prime purpose of any police  force.  

Politically and philosophically I am off the Corbynista spectrum but there is just so much cutting of a nation`s total police, security and justice system budget that can be made without everything imploding.  The reality is that until the unsupportable concept of a "free" NHS providing the best health care for an ever increasing and ageing  population is confronted head on with the fact that "free" at the point of use means inevitably a rationing of said healthcare the position will be the same as in the former Soviet Union where bread was so cheap it was affordable by all but it was rationed to reduce demand. The residents of  Frognal and Fitzjohns and Hampstead Town wards are discovering right now that there is a point where a limit has been reached.