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Wrexham & Clwyd South Liberal DemocratsCampaigning with Bill Brereton for Wrexham and Aled Roberts for North Wales |
Elected Police Commissioners - What's Going On?
March 21, 2011 1:16 PM
The Conservative Home Secretary Theresa May seems intent on introducing elected Police Commissioners across Britain. This is an ill thought out and costly concept.
Yes it is clear that the power of the Chief Constable does need to be controlled.
We know that very clearly in North Wales.
It is also clear that Police Authorities are not always able to do this.
Not many people would claim that the present Police Authority system is perfect - it is however part of a structure that has developed for well over 100 years and works, however imperfectly.
To replace the Police Authority with an elected police and crime commissioner will be hugely expensive. One estimate puts the cost across England and Wales at £130 million. This is at a time when England and Wales will lose 16,000 police officers.
You might like to write to the Home Secretary with ideas as to how that money could be put to better use!
The evidence for the change is flimsy and the costs are high.
It is of great concern that this proposal will lead to populist and low level debate on parking and minor matters.
This will miss important issues concerning murder investigations, crime that crosses borders, organised crime and drug dealing, human trafficking, and even preparedness for major incidents such as nuclear power stations going wrong.
These are things that most people do not see in front of their eyes every day but are there nevertheless. Policing is a complex operation.
Please let's have a serious and informed debate to tackle this superficial proposal.
What would you like to do next?
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