Those more well informed could you see something like this happening? Though my opinion may not be as well informed as those in the know, aerial policing is forever changing with the introduction of better and more reliable drones where previously only NPAS could fulfil the role, which must be eating into how often they are required (Think policing football matches, firearms ops containment, that sort of thing where an eye in the sky is great but fairly static) Any police force admittedly would be daft requesting NPAS for any job that a drone is capable of fulfilling at a much much lower cost
Would the H145 be a strong option for the NPAS fleet renewal? The H145 has a greater payload capacity which suits the requirement for all the role kit NPAS machines require and as far as I'm aware better endurance. Though unit cost would be higher, NPAS could widen their coverage/reach from specific bases (Due to the increased endurance) and then close some of the "quieter" bases down that exist solely to ensure that the 'National' in NPAS is fulfilled. NPAS are no strangers to closing bases, as they were formed they were ruthless. They could operate far more efficiently in tandem with the fixed wing, where missions that would normally see two helicopters alternating based on crew rest and the requirement to refuel, the fixed wing unit could deploy and when arriving on scene could stand down the rotary unit which deployed initially to get on scene quickly, rotary units being used for fast response times and then fixed wing for persistence (For Missing person searches/large search areas). This would mean the rotary fleet could reduce in size leaving the potential for NPAS to offset some of the cost of fewer new units by selling off some of the 135 frames and not replacing them, and also reduce the maintenance requirements across the fleet, with newer reliable airframes reducing maintenance/tech fault downtime for the fewer remaining operating bases
I know this, in theory, is a very perfect world argument, and we all know from how NPAS is ran it is by no means a perfect world, but surely in a world where drones constantly raise the question "Are the benefits of having NPAS and its capabilities overhead during an incident worth the associated costs", surely NPAS needs to ensure it is operating at peak efficiency to keep those costs down and maintain its value to the different police forces across the country, As drones continue to improve and assume more and more of the taskings previously fulfilled by NPAS will the justification to spend public money on police aviation come under more scrutiny?