Candidate Statement of Andy Canning

Posted on 01/10/2012 by samchapman

Andy Canning, Mayor of Dorchester and local Councillor has been chosen as the Liberal Democrat candidate to become Dorset’s first Police and Crime Commissioner.


Experience

I was trained as an economist and later worked at a senior level for a large insurance company and two major banks. This has given me the experience of managing large budgets in the private sector. I will apply my financial background to make sure that the Police achieve value for money for Council Tax payers.

 

Young People

 

As a Local Councillor I have been involved in developing a policy of working with young people, listening to their views and then acting on them. In Dorchester over the last ten years we have renovated and improved every Play Area; supported a thriving Youth Club and operated zero tolerance towards graffiti and vandalism.

 

These policies have had a marked effect on reducing anti-social behaviour and crime.

 

Working together to combat crime

 

By getting the Police, local authorities and young people working together, listening to each other and respecting each other’s opinions, we’ve cut crime for the whole community and given our young people plenty of other things to do.

 

Yes we need to catch criminals and yes we need to punish them, but I believe it’s so much better if we can stop people form ever getting into crime in the first place.

Responding to Local Communities needs

 

Along with other public services Dorset Police face large cuts over the coming years. Already staffing levels have been cut by 250 and a further 300 jobs have to go over the next two years.

 

It is essential that where cuts have to be made that back office staff go first and the absolute best is done to preserve the number of front-line Police Officers.

 

What must come first is putting the needs of local communities first. There can be no one-size fits all type of policing in such a varied county and one of my major tasks will be to ensure that the service provided by Dorset Police reflects the needs and priorities of all our varied communities.

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Liberal Democrats | Tagged | Leave a comment

Candidate Statement of Colin Skelton

Posted on 26/09/2012 by samchapman

Colin Skelton is standing as an Independent candidate for Wilshire Police and Crime Commissioner. If you are intending to stand to be Police and Crime Commissioner where you live, you can submit your own Candidate Statement, so get in touch at Editor@TopOfTheCops.com. Others are on the way, and we are looking for 400 words, and a photo of you to which you have rights.

 

I’m standing as an Independent Candidate in the forthcoming Police and Crime Commissioner elections in the Police area of Wiltshire. I’m standing because I want to make Wiltshire the safest place to live in the country, with the lowest level of crime. I think this is achievable if Wiltshire Police follow evidence based policies and recruit more Police Officers.

I have four main commitments, these are:

Recruit 300 new Police officers

I will recruit and train 300 new Police Officers. Bring the total Police headcount to 1300 by end of 2015.

Top 100 offenders targeted

I will aggressively target the 100 most prolific offenders within Wiltshire. Setting up five Enhanced Integrated Offender Management (IOM) teams across Wiltshire, each targeting the 20 most prolific offenders in their area.

Reduce crime by 20%

300 new Police Officers coupled with the enhanced IOM programme will reduce crime. In addition I will enhance and better resource Neighbourhood Policing Teams and make better use of intelligence/technology to reduce crime. For example I will ensure that Police Analysts are trained to the highest standards and make use of the world’s best analytical and predictive crime software in order to reduce crime. The Los Angeles Police Force has used crime predictive software for reducing burglary and have shown a 27% fall.

Look after Police Officers, PCSO’s and Police staff

None of this is possible without well motivated staff. I would treat staff fairly, make their working lives better and give them a real voice in how the organisation is ran.

I hope the people of Wiltshire would like to see this happen so that all our communities could be safer and better places to live.

Website: www.skelton4wiltspcc.co.uk

Blog: www.skelton4wiltspcc.wordpress.com

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged , | 17 Comments

Candidate Statement of Chris Wright

Posted on 25/09/2012 by samchapman

Chris Wright is standing as an Independent candidate for Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner. If you are intending to stand to be Police and Crime Commissioner where you live, you can submit your own Candidate Statement, so get in touch at Editor@TopOfTheCops.com. Others are on the way, and we are looking for 400 words, and a photo of you to which you have rights.




I am standing as a true Independent candidate because to give control of policing to politicians is quite simply wrong.

 

Ending last October I gained thirty years experience in policing; from beginning to end committed to community policing but also specialising in the planning and logistics of specialist police plans and community safety plans. My thirty years of policing was working on the 'front-line' – being so proud that I spent all that time in uniform and in DIRECT contact with the community – indeed my penultimate duty was a night duty and I know very few officers and no other candidate can make that claim.

 

My in-depth knowledge of community and specialised policing, familiarity in talking with all officers from Constables to the Chief Constable, makes me the perfect candidate to be able to analyse the direction, policies and strategies of the Gwent Constabulary and decide whether,

 

a) the direction and strategy will work, and

b) whether they are in the right direction for the communities of Gwent, and then

i. be able to cut crime and deliver an effective and efficient police service within our force area;

ii. be personally responsible for consulting with the public of Gwent to set their policing priorities;

iii. personally ensure local and national priorities are suitably funded by setting a budget and the local precept;

iv. hold the Chief Constable to account for the performance of Gwent Police;

v. ensure our community's needs are met as effectively as possible.

 

As your first Police and Crime Commissioner I will open a full and frank dialogue with partners, such as Victim Support, local Councils and the Probation Service, to ensure that once a victim is identified or an offender is brought to justice then a whole gambit of actions will take place to support or reassure the victim and drive home the repulsion our communities feel about criminals and their actions.

 

Finally I am not a political candidate nor have I ever been a political party member. I have not asked for 'back-room' party support – like some other so-called 'Independents' – and I want to assure everyone that my full-time goal is to maintain the great community work and crime reductions the Gwent Police have shown recently even after the cuts sent this way by Politicians and successive Governments.

http://www.chris4gwentpcc.co.uk/

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | 5 Comments

Candidate Statement of William Morris

Posted on 24/09/2012 by samchapman

William Morris is standing as an Independent candidate for Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner. If you are intending to stand to be Police and Crime Commissioner where you live, you can submit your own Candidate Statement, so get in touch at Editor@TopOfTheCops.com. Others are on the way, and we are looking for 400 words, and a photo of you to which you have rights.

I advocate a policy of targeting under-age drinking and street crime. I believe that social deprivation is a key cause of crime. My immediate seven point action plan is:

1. Less police bureaucracy, more arrests (at present the UK police forces are grossly overburdened with paper work)

2. Insisting on more rehab and detox centres to deal with drug abuse in Devon and Cornwall

3. Speaking out about the causes of crime, particularly poor social conditions and under investment in the region

4. Greater police presence in town centres on Friday and Saturday nights

5. Targeting the alcohol and drugs issues:

· Our children are vulnerable to the excesses of their own peers in a world in which drugs, alcohol and sex are marketed at a frenetic pace to the very young, both deliberately and inadvertently.

· The ease with which the young gain access to alcohol is disturbing, with cheap drink being sold to the under sixteens by some less scrupulous wine merchants; and we all know those few rogue city centre pubs that willingly sell alcohol to the underage. Anyone who has ever visited a prison, or worked with the police, will know full well that most, indeed almost all, violent crime is committed by those under the influence of alcohol, or seeking to obtain drugs. Heroin withdrawal produces very aggressive symptoms. And young men in a crowd tanked up on alcohol become doubly dangerous to the vulnerable, indeed to all of us.

6. An increase in resources allocated to the prevention and investigation of theft

7. Bringing influence to bear to promote better prisoner rehabilitation and an improved probation service

In a very real sense it is because of the need for human dignity that we maintain a Police Force. We need to be able to walk free from the threat of robbery, violence, abuse and fear.

Our basic human rights include the right to walk in the streets of our towns and villages without concern about the need to watch our backs no matter the time of the day or night. The police are not here to fill forms and shuffle paperwork. They are here to keep our society free, to keep our children safe, and to protect life and property from threat of any kind. It is my intention to make sure they are enabled to do just that.

______________________________________________

William Morris

Blog: http://southwestjustice.blogspot.co.uk

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SouthWestMorris

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/William-Morris-Independent-Candidate-for-Police-Commissioner/138288099647432

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | 2 Comments

Candidate Statement of Joe Michna

Posted on 23/09/2012 by samchapman

Councillor Joe Michna is standing as the Green Party candidate for Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner. If you are intending to stand to be Police and Crime Commissioner where you live, you can submit your own Candidate Statement, so get in touch at Editor@TopOfTheCops.com. Others are on the way, and we are looking for 400 words, and a photo of you to which you have rights.

I will be contesting the Police and Crime Commissioner election in Cleveland and I am putting forward a bold and comprehensive manifesto which covers both local policing issues and also the challenge of dealing with the ‘globalisation of crime.’

 

If elected, I will seek to set an example to other elected representatives by accepting only £35,000 of the Government recommended £70,000 salary for the post. I will give the Cleveland Police Force strong, robust and fair leadership and also be the ‘People’s Voice’ on all matters related to crime and local policing.

 

 

My key aims, objectives and priorities, if elected will be :

 

• giving the Cleveland Police Force strong leadership and direction

• challenging and holding to account the Chief Constable

• accepting only £35,000 of the proposed £70,000 salary for the post

• improving and strengthening support for victims of crime

• seeking to achieve ‘value for money’ in all Police activities

• holding Police and Crime Commissioner ‘advice and listening surgeries’ throughout Cleveland when local residents can meet with me on a face-to-face basis

• conducting monthly ‘Neighbourhood Crime and Security Walkabouts’ in different areas of Cleveland

• working and campaigning with others to oppose any further reduction in the number of Police Officers in Cleveland

• undertaking a ‘green audit’ of all Cleveland Police Force operations and procedures with the aim of making the Force the most environmentally friendly in the UK

• having more ‘bobbies on bikes’ as an effective means of providing local policing

• in partnership with other agencies, improving the ability of the Cleveland Police to tackle and prevent ‘neighbours from hell’ causing misery for local residents

• ensuring that the Cleveland Police Force has the resources and the expertise to investigate ‘economic and white collar crime’

• making sure that in an era of the ‘globalisation of crime’ the Cleveland Police Force works effectively with other UK national crime agencies and also with crime and criminal enforcement organisations from other countries, particularly those from other European Union countries

• recognising the importance of confronting and challenging ‘ organised crime structures’ in the Cleveland area no matter how large of or small these structures may be

• setting up a special team, headed by the Police and Crime Commissioner, to seek to reduce levels of sickness absence from the Force through enhanced support for employees and improved sickness and absence management procedures.

 

 

This is a new elected position and one which has huge potential to improve local policing in the Cleveland area and to forge a better and more effective partnership between the Police Force and local people in combating crime, insecurity and ant-social behaviour. My manifesto seeks to achieve this aim.

 

 

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Green Party | 3 Comments

Candidate Statement of Mary Robinson

Posted on 22/09/2012 by samchapman

Mary Robinson is standing as an Independent candidate for Cumbria Police and Crime Commissioner. If you are intending to stand to be Police and Crime Commissioner where you live, you can submit your own Candidate Statement, so get in touch at Editor@TopOfTheCops.com. Others are on the way, and we are looking for 400 words, and a photo of you to which you have rights.



Cumbria has one of the lowest levels of crime in England and I aim to keep it that way. I believe Policing in our county is far too important to be politicised but I am not naive and recognise that politics are part of daily life but feel strongly that they should not be involved in Policing.

 

I am dedicated to making a difference to the lives of residents of my home County of Cumbria and have worked with young people and within my community for over 40 years. To do this more effectively I stood for election to the District Council in 2003.

 

I have many years of experience running a business and work at a strategic level in my current employment, as a Chair of Governors at a Primary School and as Deputy Leader of Eden District Council. I have a Masters Degree in Business Administration and have the knowledge, skills, commitment and life experience to take on the role of Police Commissioner.

 

I am currently serving my second term as Chairman of the Carlisle and Eden Community Safety Partnership and have the experience and understanding of community safety through working closely with the Police and other community safety partnership members including the County wide Community Safety Partnership. I can make common sense decisions on what is likely to be the best outcomes for the different communities in Cumbria but one size doesn’t fit all in a county the size of Cumbria, there has to be local solutions for local problems.

 

I recognise there will be huge financial constraints but I intend to fight for fairer funding for Cumbria due to its sparse nature and the increased costs which result. I know there will be conflicting priorities and conflicting opinions but that does not mean better ways of doing things can’t be found through clear communication and honest negotiation.

 

I hear lots about restorative justice and how it can be used to best effect and I am sure it can work in some instances however my personal experience has been that if the person who has committed the crime doesn’t wish to take part or it is not in their interests to do so then it doesn’t happen. How can that ever be fair to the victims of crime?

 

I believe

• There should be a zero tolerance of crime and antisocial behaviour.

• The excellent work already happening around domestic violence and all the damage it does to families and to children’s futures needs to be supported.

• Policing for both rural and urban crime must be fairly delivered

• Through better communication and by working more closely with our communities they become the important partner they should be to reduce crime.

 

If I am elected Police Commissioner I would fight tooth and nail to make sure residents concerns are recognised and addressed.

 

Having worked with the Police in the community safety partnerships I truly respect the hard work and dedication of our Police Officers and would value being able to work with them to make a better Cumbria.

 

I stand for an independent common sense approach to Policing Cumbria with the residents interests at heart of an agreed Policing Plan.

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | 2 Comments

Labour Pains

Posted on 21/09/2012 by samchapman

There's a little more to the story of the unions funding the selection campaigns of their preferred candidates. If a union (or any single donor) gives a candidate who is a party member over £1,500, in cash or in kind, toward their selection campaign, the candidate needs to tell the Electoral Commission about that, within 30 days of accepting the gift. Now whatever counts as accepting, it is something that is done within 30 days of receiving the gift so, depending on the specifics, candidates have between 30-60 days to tell the Commission.

Now, as the Labour selection process finished with announcements mid-June, those 60 days have long gone, and it looks awfully like only one candidate has made a declaration. I am focussing on Labour, partly because their 60 days is long gone, but also partly because of elements of their selection process that make this more likely to be an issue for them than for other parties. Labour:-

  • Selected by postal ballot.
  • Gave member addresses to candidates so they could write to members.
  • Requires candidates to be members of trades unions.
  • Used trades unions in the early selection processes.
  • Gave email addresses to candidates, along with the mailchimp service, but this is believed only to reach half of the total membership.
  • Limited candidates to a 200-word statement distributed with the ballot paper.

I quite liked this bit of the Labour selection process but, with many force areas having 5,000+ members, it creates a pressure for people to invest a tidy sum in writing to members directly. Numerous candidates have lost their own money on this, but some have turned to unions to help them, and the maths can push candidates beyond the £1,500 barrier where they have to make a declaration.

But what do we mean when we say they have to declare? Well, it is an offence not to declare or to declare late and being punished for an offence is not going to be a helpful background for an election candidate for Police and Crime Commissioner. The Electoral Commission have their own policies on investigation and prosecution. Some things they investigate themselves – others they refer to the police. Sometimes they issue their own penalties. Alternatively some offences can only be prosecuted through the criminal courts, and sometimes the Commission has to decide which path to take.

I imagine this news is of interest to various sorts of people:-

  • Those who believe Labour chose the wrong candidate locally, whether inside the party or out.
  • Those who are in unions who didn't want their funds used in this way.
  • Those standing against such a candidate in these elections.

The thing about these mailshots is that they go out to lots of people, so there is a good chance where it has happened that there is evidence sitting in a drawer somewhere just waiting to trap a candidate who thinks the whole thing will pass them by, just waiting to be married up with the details in a union's accounts. And woe betide anyone who now tries to go back and make it all look legal, for that is the way to really get in trouble.

Will some be tempted to hope that no-one will find out, or just to face the problem post-election rather than now? Will that not be a bigger story, where a PCC is investigated possibly for a more serious offence, or an offence which is treated more seriously because they waited till they were elected and caught?

How extensive a problem is this? Who knows? I can reveal though that I have drawn the attention of the Electoral Commission to what I consider to be prima facie evidence of breach, and also of evidence I believe demands further investigation. I'll not name the candidates involved here but, if you are a candidate, it could be you.

If candidates want to reassure folk that they are in the clear, I'm happy to publish details candidates send me about how they funded their selection campaigns or, if you have information that suggests a candidate may have broken the law, even if it doesn't prove the whole story, I am happy to act as an anonomising conduit of information to the Electoral Commission – just send it all to Editor@TopOfTheCops.com or, if it is really good evidence of something serious and you don't want me to know who you are, you could always contact Crimestoppers.

Addendum

This post followed a useful conversation on Twitter with policing expert @BernardRix and election lawyer @RosBaston where Ros provided some clarity on a few legal points, specifically that donation limits apply to each donor, rather than a combination of donors, that in certain circumstances the time limit for reporting is as high as 60 days, and that copies of the leaflets are useful evidence to see whether rules may have been broken. Ros has not seen the evidence I've provided to the Electoral Commission, and I do not therefore claim her support for my above analysis. She specifically makes the point that it is not unusual for unions to promote candidates, and that in certain circumstances a mailshot may not count, depending on how it's managed, though she does warn that it is very difficult to 'massage' after the event.

If you are worried that you might be caught by this, @RosBaston is probably worth a follow – heck, she might even be the lawyer you need!

 

Posted in Convictions, Labour, Perspectives, Selecting Candidates | 3 Comments

Are trades unions buying influence with PCCs?

Posted on 19/09/2012 by samchapman

Regular and long-established readers will be glad to hear of the return to these pages of Lancashire Labour Candidate Clive Grunshaw, who I have previously christened 'the gift that keep on giving', and this turns out to be an ironic title, because today's article concerns some gifts that he has received.

Head over to the Electoral Commission's website and have a look at their Register of Regulated Donees, and you will find that in July (which is reported in August), with the Lancashire Labour selection safely out of the way, County Councillor Grunshaw registered two donations to his selection campaign from Unite the Union, each allegedly worth £2,500, for printing and posting of mailshots for his selection campaign.

One of these donations dated back to April, but by delaying the submission to July, Labour members cast their votes unaware that Unite's backing extended to spending £5,000 on the mailshots they got through the election campaign, and unaware that he had this funding advantage over his opponents.

You may remember that one of Cllr Grunshaw's mailshots landed him in trouble with the Labour party and led to him being forced to apologise to his Labour rivals for the post.

There are a few odd things about this though, just two of which we will explore now.

1) Doesn't Unite the Union represent Police Staff? Is it proper for a PCC candidate to accept such a significant benefit from a Union that represent staff in the organisation he seeks to lead? Will there not be questions over the impact of his every policy on police staff and union paymasters?

2) The really strange thing though is that Councillor Grunshaw's declarations are the only ones I could find from any candidate in these election related to their selection campaign. Search for your favourite candidate here. Any such donations to party members, including those in kind, and that includes the cumulative value of a number of smaller donations, to a total value of over £1,500, should already have been reported to the Commission.

Are there really no other candidates who have had such benefits? No other candidates receiving payments from a union? No other funded mailshots in Labour's all-postal ballot selections, where mailshots were the only way to get more than 200 words before the party members who have the votes?

Have Unions been trying to buy influence with Labour candidates?

Have Labour candidates failed to disclose this, keeping an inconvenient story from Labour members, and from the wider electorate?

Time will tell.

Posted in Resources | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Cambridgeshire – Expenses and Allowances

Posted on 15/09/2012 by samchapman

Ansar Ali – Independent

Mr Ali is most recently a Member of Cambridgeshire Police Authority. He has had other public appointments that fall outside the scope of the 2009-12 period.

According to Cambridgeshire Police Authority (online and response to FOI) he claimed for each of these years respectively, Basic Allowance of £8,250, £8,334.48, and £8,334.96, and Special Responsibility Allowance of £1,715.32, £2,160.73 and £1,667.04, as well as £5,399.06, £4,340.84, and £2,636.76 of Travel, Subsistence and other payments. A few members did not claim Travel, Subsistence or other payments.

This gives Ansar Ali total income from these posts of £15,364.38 in 2009-10, £14,836.05 in 2010-11, and £12,638.76 in 2011-12.

Sir Graham Bright – Conservative

Sir Graham was Conservative MP representing areas of Luton from 1979 till 1997. This predates the availability of MPs expenses information.

Paul Bullen – UKIP

Mr Bullen is a Magistrate who has previously spent more than 20 years in the RAF. TopOfTheCops is not aware of any income from public appointments or elected positions from him.

Paul Dakers -Independent

Mr Dakers was a Councillor for Huntingdonshire District Council, until he resigned on 18 December 2009, so his last year of claims is not a full one. There were some concerns noted in the press around his levels of attendance.

Huntingdonshire District Council have provided information as to claims by Mr Dakers for 2007-8, 2008-9 and 2009-10. He claimed Basic Allowance of £3,687.95, £4,212.54, and £3,176.28 in these years. He also claimed expenses of £36.40 and £22.80 in 2007-8 and 2008-9 respectively and arrears of £6.53 in 2008-9

This gives Paul Dakers total income from this post of £3,724.35 in 2007-8, £4,241.87 in 2008-9, and £3,176.28 in 2009-10

Ed Murphy – Labour

Cllr Murphy has represented Ravensthorpe on Peterborough City Council since 2011. While this does not provide a full three years, his previous service on Cambridgeshire County Council is of such antiquity that it has left no trace TopOfTheCops could find online. The details of the 2011-12 claim are awaited from Peterborough City Council

Stephen Goldspink – English Democrats

Mr Goldspink was a member of Peterborough City Council for 15 years till May 2012. His last three full years are therefore 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12, the last year of which is awaited from Peterborough City Council.

Peterborough City Council lists his claims for ‘Basic, Travel & Telephone Allowance” as £7,962.08 for each of the first two years, and Special Responsibility Allowance of £2,537.94 and £848.86 for those two years respectively. He claimed £138.70 for out-of-county mileage allowance in the first year only.

This gives Stephen Goldspink total income from this post of £10,638.72 in 2009-10 and £8,810.94 in 2010-11.

Lord Toby Jug – Official Monster Raving Loony Party

Mr Jug is a musician. He has no known public offices.

Farooq Mohamed – Independent

Mr Mohamed says he has never held public office.

Posted in Expenses and Allowances | Tagged , | Leave a comment

We’re being archived

Posted on 14/09/2012 by samchapman

The nice folk at the British Library have been in touch to ask for permission to add TopOfTheCops.com to their Web Archive. I’m inclined to say yes, but TopOfTheCops is not all mine – so if you want me to remove your material, whether that be Candidate Statement, article or comment – please contact me by close of play on Friday 21 September, or I will say yes assuming you are OK with forever being associated with this site!

Posted in Resources | 3 Comments