The question of the current Home Office position was discussed in and around
this forum posting.
I have the contact details for the Home Office official currently dealing with this matter. I will be happy to pass them on (privately) to anyone wishing to press the issue.
I quote from the main 101 web page -
http://www.police.uk/101 Quote:Is there an alternative number I can use to call to contact my local police force?Whilst members of the public are encouraged to use the '101' number to contact their local police force, where this is not possible, there is a
list of alternative numbers which can be used for contacting police forces in England, Wales or Scotland.
That list of alternative numbers (which includes
two unacceptable 0845 numbers) is not, of itself, an adequate means of advising callers of the existence of alternatives to 101. I believe that each "force" must be responsible for advising of its existence in an "appropriate" manner.
(I would see "appropriate" as falling somewhere between being hidden as if a number for use only by overseas callers and being quoted whenever there is a reference to 101. The significance of 101 and the relatively modest cost must not be undermined.)