Once again, it is time to get back to the basics of what people want from their police – to investigate, detect, and solve real crimes, not hurt feelings.
Many of our criminal justice partners would prefer me to focus on ‘out of court disposals’. But for some offenders, and their victims, a custodial sentence is the proper outcome.
The public are more intelligent when it comes to public spending than may politicians give them credit for, and they know the difference between organisations that waste money and those that don’t.
Having seen the work my team and colleagues across the country do, I have no doubt that the public are best served by those who they can hold fully accountable.
It’s time the UK moved to a model where the biggest job in policing is the NCA head and not the commissioner of one force, however good he or she may be.
What communities need from their police forces would be out in favour of top-down targets and threats of further action from the centre if chiefs don’t perform to the Labour mandate.
These positions are a successful manifesto commitment and have been crucial to increasing local accountability in policing. Vacant positions for the May elections are being advertised now.
I have always been a believer in the broken windows theory: for crime but also for standards more widely. Steve Watson – Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, and a proponent of back-to-basics policing – was right to insist on a smarter dress code.
It is absolutely right that at the next general election we will be judged on our response to law and order. The Government and PCCs, working together, have provided more money, more officers and now, more time.
Why am I spending taxpayers’ hard-earned cash on a larger police presence – when the rates of traditional crimes are falling?
Police forces can learn from Mark Rowley’s declaration that his officers should focus on tackling crime in the capital, rather than dealing with non-life-threatening mental health call-outs.
I am yet to see a plan in place that makes me think this dire situation will get better any time soon.
Dealing with mental health issues or traffic violations leaves our forces with less time to tackle the crimes we rightly expect them to solve.
Whether or not I appointed the right candidate, only time will tell, and the Surrey public will be the ultimate judge.
Catchy slogans are no substitute for a clear focus on the basics: more officers, proper investigations, and higher solve rates.