Candidate Statement of Sarah Flannery

Posted on 23/10/2012 by samchapman

Sarah Flannery is the Independent Candidate for Cheshire Police and Crime Commissioner.

“The police are the public and the public are the police,” said Sir Robert Peel, the father of modern policing whose principles are followed to this day.

I believe that only an Independent Police and Crime Commissioner can respect that principle and fulfil the main role of the PCC: to connect the public with policing.

I’ve always been Independent and political dogma has no place in my approach. As the People’s PCC, I will be a strong voice for safer communities by putting people – not party politics – at the heart of policing. And I commit to tackling this role with integrity, energy, vision and openness.

I’ve lived in Cheshire for 30 years and spent my life being heavily involved with community activities and issues across the county. That knowledge of the community and its concerns, coupled with my business background of working with public sector bodies in health and education, makes me the ideal candidate for Cheshire PCC.

I understand how collaboration can deliver effective results and value for money to help Cheshire Police continue its excellent work in reducing crime.

As Independent Cheshire Police and Crime Commissioner, I will:

• Represent all parts of Cheshire fairly, with links and surgeries across the county so that I’m visible and I know your views

• Deliver efficient policing by supporting the police service, building strong partnerships with public, private and voluntary organisations

• Reduce crime by thoughtful and realistic focus on more visible police presence, detection rates, re-offending, anti-social behaviour and dealing effectively with offenders

• Deliver value for money by supporting what works well, and resourceful commissioning that cuts crime without sacrificing public safety for profit

• Improve accountability and public confidence with regular updates on how your needs are being met – and being honest about what can and can’t be done

• Provide the best possible service for victims and witnesses of crime

• Increase the involvement of young people in community crime fighting with initiatives such as a Youth PCC

PCCs were introduced to encourage independent people to step forward and campaign on their own strengths and experience for election to this very important job.

The only way to keep Cheshire, its police and its people safe from party political crossfire is to vote Independent. I will keep the county safe from crime and from party politics.


Sarah for Cheshire PCC

 

Follow Sarah on Twitter

 

Join Sarah on Facebook

 

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Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | Leave a comment

Candidate Statement of Cedric Christie

Posted on 22/10/2012 by samchapman

Cedric Christie is the Independent Candidate for Police and Crime Commissioner in West Yorkshire.

I am the only INDEPENDENT candidate. I am not a politician, what you see with me is what you get.

At school in Leeds I stood up to bullies. My anti-bullying principles are entrenched.

I then worked tirelessly over 30 years certified exemplary service to bring criminals to justice, reaching Inspector rank.

If criminals break into your house, rob you at knifepoint, assault you, subject you to anti-social behaviour, abuse you on the grounds of difference, then they are personally bullying you.

When you are a victim you turn to the Police. You want to be treated with respect, listened to, be supported and protected.

You ask that your crime is investigated professionally and the perpetrators caught.

Your Police must act with honesty, integrity, fairness, impartiality and within the law. They have a duty to report colleagues misconduct.

West Yorkshire houses a minority that do not adopt these standards. They are tainted by greed and power. They commit criminal offences, lie, cheat and bully. When challenged they close ranks. This impropriety goes right to the top of the organisation.

I know the difference between right and wrong. I never allowed negative traits to influence my behaviour whilst serving you. I would never do so as the first Police and Crime Commissioner for West Yorkshire.

I will chase the corrupt and incompetent out of office. They do not deserve your respect.

Read my website. You will be shocked.

Now is your opportunity to influence the future of policing for many years to come for the safety and security of our wonderful county.

Show everyone you really care about policing. Lets have the highest turn out in the country.

Vote for honesty, integrity, accountability and transparency.

www.pcccedchristie.co.uk

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | 1 Comment

Doing it justice: Integrating criminal justice and emergency services through PCCs

Posted on 22/10/2012 by samchapman

Will Tanner is a Researcher at the independent, non-party thinktank Reform, whose new report, Doing it justice, is available here.

At noon today the Prime Minister will deliver a speech on criminal justice reform, his first since taking office in May 2010. The timing is opportune. At the mid-point in the Parliament, police and criminal justice services face a crucial juncture.

The Prime Minister’s intervention comes just one month before one of the most significant reforms to local criminal justice since the establishment of the Metropolitan Police in 1829; the election of 41 Police and Crime Commissioners on 15 November. For the first time, local policing will be accountable to the communities that bear the costs of crime, not the whim or will of Whitehall.

Yet as they stand the Government’s reforms risk being discredited before they have even begun. Police and Crime Commissioners will be elected with responsibility and budgetary control over just policing, only one of many agencies involved in the local fight against crime, and yet be accountable for crime outcomes as a whole. Without powers over prisons and probation, PCCs will be unable to influence the high reoffending rates that contribute so greatly to local crime; without oversight of ambulance or fire and rescue they will be unable to join up emergency services to improve response times and deliver more preventative services to stop crimes from happening in the first place. Whoever the public elects will be inherently limited in their ability to fulfill their election manifestos as a result.

The Government has already hinted at a wider role for PCCs. In the Swift and Sure White Paper, Ministers heralded the potential of PCCs to transform criminal justice “from an uncoordinated and fragmented system into a seamless and efficient service”, possibly through commissioning other services like probation and youth offending teams. In his speech, the Prime Minister should put bones on these ideas and go much further besides.

As new Reform research shows, the most successful criminal justice organisations integrate services to deliver a better service to communities and end-to-end rehabilitation for offenders. In Glasgow, joint working between police, local government and health services within the Violence Reduction Unit has transformed a city previously blighted by violent gang crime. By working together to target gang members, agencies have reduced violent crime by 38 per cent since 2006 and improved police detection rates by a fifth. Serious assaults have fallen by 42 per cent and murders have fallen by nearly a third. In Warwickshire, a similar approach has been used to improve services for victims and the community. The creation of two Justice Centres has brought police, prisons, courts, youth offending teams and victim support under the same roof, delivering a more coordinated service and higher satisfaction for users. Police and Crime Commissioners, as a single point of accountability and budgetary control, offer a vehicle to make this type of approach the rule, rather than the exception.

There is another, even more pressing, imperative for the criminal justice system: austerity. Police and justice services are currently halfway through one of the most stringent Spending Reviews in their history, in which the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice must reduce real terms spending by 23 per cent each by 2014-15. Yet even as they reduce spending by a fifth by 2015, services are facing up to the prospect of further cuts thereafter. If healthcare spending is protected in line with GDP, as seems likely, criminal justice spending will fall by a further 3.4 per cent a year between 2014-15 and 2016-17. As Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and the National Audit Office have shown, the “burning platform” of cuts is already driving innovation and better value for money, but efficiencies are time-limited and new models of delivery will be needed to ensure the fiscal sustainability in the future.

With wider powers, PCCs would be well placed to achieve such sustainability. Already joint emergency control centres, such as the Tri-Service centre in Gloucestershire, are reducing costs while improving responsiveness. Leading fire services such as Greater Manchester have shown how to reduce costs and make communities safer at the same time, by shifting their resources into fire prevention. The achievement of lower crime and greater safety will enable sustainable reductions in spending, in particular on costly prison places. Commissioners would have a clear incentive to save money since they will be able to pass on savings to their electorates through reductions in the precept portion of local council tax.

Such integrated models could be complimented by more creative commissioning and greater use of alternative providers, including private companies. The success of private provision in prisons and police support should give candidates confidence to extend competition elsewhere, for example to fire and rescue, ambulance services and probation. In the UK, private companies already provide fire and rescue services, for example at airports. Privately managed prisons, such as HMP Parc and HMP Doncaster, have shown the value of private sector expertise in integrating through-the-gate services to improve prisoner resettlement and reduce reoffending. Those PCC candidates who have rejected the use of the private sector before they even take office may find themselves unable to effect real change when they are elected.

Police and Crime Commissioners are a significant step in the right direction, but they risk losing the confidence of the public if they do not have the tools to effectively address the causes of crime. Of the 43 force areas, more than half have similar boundaries to local probation and fire and rescue authorities, meaning there is already a ready-made framework for integration and local accountability that could be extended to remaining areas with minimal restructuring. If the Government is serious about criminal justice reform, it should take this flagship reform to its logical, local conclusion and devolve power and budgets for all criminal justice and emergency services to PCCs.

Posted in Perspectives, Resources | Leave a comment

Definitive List of PCC candidates 2012

Posted on 22/10/2012 by samchapman

As nominations have closed, here is the definitive list of validly nominated PCC candidates, as published by the Police Area Returning Officers. This is what goes on the Ballot paper. It includes the impact of 2 withdrawals of nominated candidates, and for each area there is a link to the official source, most of which are actual Statements by Returning Officers, so don’t click on them unless you want to download a file.

Avon and Somerset

Statement of Persons Nominated

Pete Levy – Liberal Democrat – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Ken Maddock – Conservative – Website – TopOfTheCops ‘Risking It All’ Article

Sue Mountstevens – Independent – Website

John Savage – Labour

—————-

Bedfordshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Kevin Carroll – British Freedom Party – Website

Linda Jack – Liberal Democrats – Website

Olly Martins – Labour and Co-operative- Website

Jas Parmar – Conservative & Unionist – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Mezanur Rashid – Independent

—————-

Cambridgeshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Ansar Ali – Independent – Website

Sir Graham Bright – Conservative – Website

Paul Bullen – UKIP

Stephen Goldspink – English Democrats – ‘More Police – Catching Criminals’

Farooq Mohammed – Independent – Website

Rupert Moss-Eccardt – Liberal Democrat

Ed Murphy – Labour

—————-

Cheshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Ainsley Arnold – Liberal Democrat

Louise Bours – UKIP

John Dwyer – Conservative – Website

Sarah Flannery – Independent – Website

John Stockton – Labour – Website

—————-

Cleveland

Statement of Persons Nominated

Sultan Alam – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Barry Coppinger – Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Ken Lupton – Conservative – Website

Joe Michna – Green – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

—————-

Cumbria

Statement of Persons Nominated

Pru Jupe – Liberal Democrat

Patrick Leonard – Labour

Richard Rhodes – Conservative – Website

Mary Robinson – Independent – Facebook

—————-

Derbyshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Alan Charles – Labour – Website

David Gale – UKIP

Rod Hutton – Independent

Simon Spencer – Conservative – Website

Charles Swabey was nominated as an Independent but withdrew saying that he did not want to divide the Independent vote.

—————-

Devon and Cornwall

Statement of Persons Nominated

Brian Blake – Liberal Democrat

Graham Calderwood – Independent

Brian Greenslade – Independent

Tony Hogg – Conservative – Website

Ivan Jordan – Independent

Tam Macpherson – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

William Morris – Independent – Website

John Smith – Independent – Website

Robert Smith – UKIP

Nicky Williams – Labour – Website

—————-

Dorset

Statement of Persons Nominated

Andy Canning – Liberal Democrat – Website

Nick King – Conservative – Website

Rachel Rogers – Labour – Website

Martyn Underhill – Independent – Website

—————-

Durham

Statement of Persons Nominated

Mike Costello – UKIP

Ron Hogg – Labour

Kingsley Smith – Independent

Nick Varley – Conservative – Website

—————-

Dyfed-Powys

Statement of Persons Nominated

Christine Gwyther – Labour

Christopher Salmon – Conservative – Website

—————-

Essex

Statement of Persons Nominated

Nick Alston – Conservative – Website

Linda Belgrove – Independent – Website

Val Morris-Cook – Labour

Andrew Smith – UKIP

Mick Thwaites – Independent – Website

Robin Tilbrook – English Democrats – ‘More Police – Catching Criminals’ – Website

—————-

Gloucestershire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Victoria Atkins – Conservative – Website

Alastair Cameron – Liberal Democrat

Rupi Dhanda – Labour – Website

Martin Surl – Independent – Website

—————-

Greater Manchester

Statement of Persons Nominated

Matt Gallagher – Liberal Democrats – Website

Tony Lloyd – Labour – Website

Roy Warren – Independent

Michael Winstanley – Conservative – Website

Steve Woolfe – UKIP – Facebook

—————-

Gwent

Statement of Persons Nominated

Ian Brian Johnston – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Hamish Sandison – Welsh Labour – Website

Nick Webb – Welsh Conservative – Website

Christopher Wright – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

—————-

Hampshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

David Goodall – Liberal Democrat – Website

Simon Hayes – Independent – Website

Don Jerrard – Justice and Anti-Corruption – Website

Michael Mates – Conservative – Website

Jacqui Rayment – Labour – Website

Stephen West – UKIP – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

—————-

Hertfordshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Sherma Batson – Labour – Website

David Lloyd – Conservative – Website

Marion Mason – UKIP

Christopher Townsend – Liberal Democrat – Website

—————-

Humberside

Statement of Persons Nominated

Godfrey Bloom – UKIP – Website

Simone Butterworth – Liberal Democrats – Website

Paul Davison – Independent – Website

Neil Eyre – Independent – Website

Matthew Grove – Conservative – Website

John Prescott – Labour – Website

Walter Sweeney – Independent – Website

—————-

Kent

Statement of Persons Nominated

Ann Barnes – Independent – Website

Dai Liyanage – Independent – Website

Craig Mackinley – Conservative – Website

Steve Uncles – English Democrats – ‘More Police – Catching Criminals’ – Website

Piers Wauchope – UKIP

Harriet Yeo – Labour – Website

—————-

Lancashire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Afzal Anwar – Liberal Democrat

Tim Ashton – Conservative – Website

Rob Drobny – UKIP

Clive Grunshaw – Labour – Website

—————-

Leicestershire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Sir Clive Loader – Conservative – Website

Suleman Nagdi– Independent – Website

Sarah Russell – Labour – Website

—————-

Lincolnshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

David Bowles – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Richard Davies – Conservative – Website

Paul Gleeson – Labour

Alan Hardwick – Independent – Website

Mervyn Barrett was nominated as an Independent candidate but withdrew following adverse coverage about his campaign/campaign manager – see here and here.

—————-

Merseyside

Statement of Persons Nominated (Excel .xls)

Geoff Gubb – Conservative

Hilary Jones – UKIP

Paula Keaveney – Liberal Democrats – Website

Jane Kennedy – Labour – Website

Kiron Reid – Independent – Website

Paul Rimmer – English Democrats – ‘More Police – Catching Criminals’

—————-

Norfolk

Statement of Persons Nominated

Jamie Athill – Conservative – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Stephen Bett – Independent – Website

James Joyce – Liberal Democrat

Steve Morphew – Labour – Website

Matthew Smith – UKIP

—————-

Northamptonshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Lee Barron – Labour

Jim MacArthur – UKIP

John Norrie – Independent – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Adam Simmonds – Conservative – Website

Paul Varnsverry – Liberal Democrat – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement to follow!

—————-

Northumbria

Statement of Persons Nominated

Peter Andras – Liberal Democrats

Vera Baird – Labour – Website

Alastair Baxter – UKIP

Phil Butler – Conservative – Website

—————-

North Wales

Statement of Persons Nominated

Richard Hibbs – Independent – TopOfTheCops Article

Colm McCabe – Welsh Conservative

Tal Michael – Welsh Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops article, and Risking It All entry

Warwick Nicholson – UKIP – Website

Winston Roddick – Independent

—————-

North Yorkshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Julia Mulligan – Conservative – Website

Ruth Potter – Labour – Website

—————-

Nottinghamshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Raj Chandran – Independent – Website

Tony Roberts – Conservative

Malcolm Spencer – Independent – Website

Paddy Tipping – Labour – Website

—————-

Staffordshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Matthew Ellis – Conservative – Website

Joy Garner – Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

—————-

South Wales

Statement of Persons Nominated

Mike Baker – Independent – Website

Caroline Jones – Welsh Conservative

Alun Michael – Labour – Website

Tony Verderame – Independent

—————-

South Yorkshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

David Allen – English Democrats – “More Police – Catching Criminals!”

Jonathan Arnott – UKIP – Website

Nigel Bonson – Conservative – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Robert Teal – Liberal Democrat

Shaun Wright – Labour – Website

—————-

Suffolk

Statement of Persons Nominated

Jane Basham – Labour – Website

David Cocks – Independent – Website

Bill Mountford – UKIP

Tim Passmore – Conservative – Website

—————-

Surrey

Statement of Persons Nominated

Robert Evans – Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Kevin Hurley – Zero Tolerance Policing ex Chief – Website

Julie Iles – Conservative – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Nick O’Shea – Liberal Democrat – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Robert Shatwell – UKIP

Peter Williams – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

—————-

Sussex

Statement of Persons Nominated

Tony Armstrong – UKIP – Website

Katy Bourne – Conservative – Website

Ian Chisnall – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Godfrey Daniel – Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

David Rogers – Liberal Democrat – Website

—————-

Thames Valley

Statement of Persons Nominated

Patience Awe – Independent – Facebook

Barry Cooper – UKIP – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Geoff Howard – Independent – Profile on PoliceCrimeCommissioner.co.uk

John Howson – Liberal Democrat – Website

Anthony Stansfeld – Conservative – Website

Tim Starkey – Labour – Website

—————-

Warwickshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Ron Ball – Independent – Website

Fraser Pithie – Conservative – Website

James Plaskitt – Labour – Website

—————-

West Mercia

Statement of Persons Nominated

Adrian Blackshaw – Conservative – Website

Bill Longmore – Independent – Website

Simon Murphy – Labour

—————-

West Midlands

Statement of Persons Nominated

Matt Bennett – Conservative – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Bill Etheridge – UKIP – Website

Cath Hannon – Independent – Website

Bob Jones – Labour – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Ayoub Khan – Liberal Democrat – Website

Mike Rumble – Independent – Website

Derek Webley – Independent – Website

—————-

West Yorkshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Mark Burns-Williamson – Labour – Website

Geraldine Carter – Conservative – Website

Cedric Christie – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Andrew Marchington – Liberal Democrat – Website

—————-

Wiltshire

Statement of Persons Nominated

Paul Batchelor – Liberal Democrat

Angus Macpherson – Conservative – Website

Clare Moody – Labour

John Short – UKIP – Website

Liam Silcocks – Independent

Colin Skelton – Independent – Website – TopOfTheCops Candidate Statement

Posted in Resources | 1 Comment

What will Mervyn do?

Posted on 21/10/2012 by samchapman

A PCC candidate’s lot is not a happy one. Whether ‘blessed’ by party support or independent of it, the task of reaching anywhere from 500,000 to over 2 million people with the meagre resources you have managed to scratch together has already proved too daunting for some. Candidates must have a feeling a little bit like that experienced by the disciples when they initially compared the size of the hungry congregation with the amount of fish and baked goods. The definitive lists of nominated candidates are therefore differing slightly from the rumours we’ve been spreading here for months.

So spare a thought for how the candidates felt as they sipped their tea and consumed their toast and marmalade over, say, the Sunday Telegraph, and saw Andrew Gilligan’s article. I would think the thoughts varied from ‘how much?’, through ‘how can I get some of that?’ and to a realisation that having, like them, sought free publicity from the press for months, Lincolnshire Independent Mervyn Barrett (OBE) must now be wondering whether there really is no such thing as a bad variety of it. My post from a few days ago may be seeming slightly prophetic, all the more so, as it was written before I got the call from Mr Gilligan.

Gilligan’s article is something rare in this election, a bit of real journalism, rather than another rehearsal of hackneyed complaints about the reform. I’ve been going on about  ‘Where is Mervyn getting all his money?’ since I shared a table with him at a PCC conference in June, and noticed he had a sidekick with him to take notes, unlike all those privileged party people flying solo in the same room. Gilligan’s article is the first take on some answers to that question – or at least the first to get past the lawyers and out to the public.

The article does not go so far as to allege that Mervyn Barrett has taken money from the American ‘think tank’/Political Action Committee mentioned therein. This is important, as campaign donations above £50 need to come from UK sources to be legal, but the problem is that up until now the campaign has been spending an awful lot of money and when questioned has shown a high priority for maintaining the privacy of donors over transparency.

That approach is unsatisfactory, much like the campaign’s response to the revelation that someone bought thousands of Twitter followers for Mr Barrett – which has never properly been put to bed. The campaign may have got the legal angle covered, but it’s a political campaign, and it needs to cover the politics too. Things that look dodgy can be just as damaging as things that actually are dodgy.

Barrett is left with a real difficulty. He has publicity in place, adverts having run, polling done, a film made and now publicised by the Sunday Telegraph, and the nomination secured. As the Sunday papers make their way to the recycling bin it might be tempting to tough it out.

However, if the team’s resignation is real, and not just a publicity stunt, then he has just lost the heart of his campaign workforce, and possibly the funding too. Everyone has been working to the nomination deadline of last Friday and the voting deadline of 15 November, but there is another election deadline that few note. Midday on Wednesday 24th October is the deadline for when a nominated candidate can withdraw. Mr Barrett has scheduled a Press Conference for Wednesday, while he “takes time to reflect”. Is this the end of the Barrett campaign?

If not, his statement needs to be clear, comprehensive and decisive, leaving no room for questions or doubt. He needs to say where every penny is coming from, why his campaign team are no longer with him, and why they were with him in the first place. If he doesn’t, his election story could be the PCC equivalent of Andrew Mitchell’s lingering death.

I have to say though, there are a few loose-ends I’m not happy with.

1) This ‘think tank’/PAC. It’s called the ‘Fund for a New American Century’. Now that sounds awfully like the Project for the New American Century, a proper American think tank supported by people you might have heard of, like Dick Cheney and Jeb Bush, but is it really the same thing or something deliberately contrived to look similar to it? The “Fund”‘s online presence is a single-page website for MatthewPAC, seemingly named after self-styled neo-con and recent Barrett campaign manager Matthew De Unger Brown.

2) Were I to pick someone involved in this election likely to be supported by a Neo-Conservative American political group, I’d pick, well, me, not Mervyn Barrett. I’d pick someone whose election campaign might have the slogan ‘Vote for me and buy shares in rope’, not the ‘Criminals are just misunderstood’ Guardian-reading pigeon-hole into which I would be tempted to place Mr Barrett. It just doesn’t look right. Is that the point? Is that pigeon-hole what international commercial interests think sells in the UK? Is Mr Barrett a privatising wolf in bleeding-heart sheep’s clothing?

3) Finally, just who are these other PCC candidates they are supposedly supporting? Candidates from other areas who’ve had their photo taken with Mr Barrett recently must be diving for cover.

Posted in Media coverage, Perspectives | 5 Comments

Electoral Commission advertise PCC booklet

Posted on 21/10/2012 by samchapman

For those worried that no-one will know about the election, this is the Electoral Commission's ad about the booklet they will be putting through your door.

Hat-tip to Mark Pack for spotting this before I did.

 

Posted in Resources | Tagged | 1 Comment

Electoral Commission advertise PCC booklet

Posted on 21/10/2012 by samchapman

For those worried that no-one will know about the election, this is the Electoral Commission's ad about the booklet they will be putting through your door.

Hat-tip to Mark Pack for spotting this before I did.

 

Posted in Resources | Tagged | Leave a comment

Candidate Statement of Stephen West

Posted on 19/10/2012 by samchapman
Stephen West is UKIP‘s candidate for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Police and Crime Commissioner.

As your Police and Crime Commissioner, I will tackle crime at its source, with zero tolerance of anti-social behaviour and protect the vulnerable.

My principles of Positive Policing are based on visible neighbourhood policing by permanently assigned police officers who residents and young people know and trust. Policing is by consent and relies on open communication. Neighbourhood police teams will hold public meetings where residents can share issues and concerns and police officers can inform and advise residents.

Causing harassment, damage to property and verbally abusing people is not just anti-social, it is a criminal offence. Those found to be behaving in a threatening way or intimidating others will be arrested. Anti-social behaviour is often alcohol related; shops and bars that serve alcohol to people who are already drunk or who are under age should lose their licence.

I will also ensure that those who defend themselves, their property or their families will not be treated like criminals.

Victims of crime will be treated with respect and compassion and will be kept informed about their case.

The commitments that I make are simple –

* No reduction in the numbers of front line police

* No real terms increase in your Council Tax contribution (precept)

* Zero tolerance of anti-social behaviour

* Reduce overall crime levels

* Support victims of crime

* Support campaign to tear down speed cameras

As a former Special Constabulary officer with 12 years front line policing experience, I understand crime and the demanding role of being a police officer. I will give your police officers the tools to do their job and free them from the constraints of political correctness.

I am for the victim, NOT the criminal.

http://www.vote4stephen.com

08448 047572

Posted in Candidate Statements, UKIP | Tagged | 1 Comment

Mitt Romney Style?

Posted on 18/10/2012 by samchapman

Fraser Nelson makes some important points in today's Telegraph article “Elected Police Commissioners: a criminal waste of a good idea“, even if a few of the details are off (the Badger Party lady is no longer standing). A section worth focussing on is this :- “To the Tories’ horror, the race has become party political. Labour is fielding several well-funded candidates. Some policemen who wanted to stand have dropped out, saying they can’t afford the cost of campaigning, estimated at anything up to £50,000.“

Some might contest his first point. Were the Conservatives not the first party to indicate they would be fielding candidates under a party label? Well, yes, I think they were. But I'll back up what Fraser says here. 18 months ago it was clear to me that the party was really in two minds about whether to put forward candidates or to wait for credible independents to emerge who they could then back. As time went on there was, shall we say, no rush to a decision, and in the end of the day, as the selection and resignation of a candidate who refused to join the party showed, there seems to have been an effort to merge the two options, in an effort to have the best of both worlds, which sometimes gives you the worst of them instead.

His third point is also telling, though it should be noted that it is not just police officers who have been tested by the funding requirement. The Conservatives genuinely wanted successful independents to stand – that is evidenced by Theresa May's secret meeting with Simon Weston, followed by the sudden launch of his campaign. But someone seems to have missed that the giant constituencies, combined with the lack of provision of a candidate's booklet to electors, would mean that any Independent would have to be able to lay their hands on significant amounts of cash in order to get any sort of message to voters. Yes, the parties have the same problem, but that's why they already have in place fundraising arrangements and volunteers to hit the doorsteps. Is this a problem with the notion of 'successful Independent'? Success is something not best measured in pounds and pence, and we shouldn't assume that the best candidates would be able to sing along with the Mitt Romney parody above, and the line “you should elect me 'cause I got so much mon-ey“.

A small number of Independents are spending away though. Mervyn Barrett in Lincolnshire has a professional campaign team, campaign video, newspaper adverts, and DVDs being distributed, with money from…. well, Mervyn ain't saying. And Mervyn doesn't have to say – the only funding spent outside the election period that needs to be declared is any donations from a single source above £1,500 – but that doesn't apply to people who aren't in a political party or elected office already, so Mervyn has an advantage for once over his party opponents.

And that brings us to the second point that you may have thought I skipped over – those “well-funded Labour candidates“. I have already expressed my surprise that TopOfTheCops regular Clive Grunshaw is the only Labour candidate in the country to have declared mailshots of over £1,500 in value funded by a trades-union in his selection campaign. Other candidates had union backing, mailshots funded from somewhere, and the same problem to solve, namely how to fund a message or two to the several thousand local members of the Labour party who were doing the choosing. Did none of them really rely on that level of support from a union?

So I asked the Electoral Commission to take a look, and they are doing so. I wasn't going to name names, as I genuinely do not know whether any funds have changed hands, never mind whether anything improper has occurred, but I note that there is an email in circulation among Councillors in South Yorkshire which states of Councillor Shaun Wright that, as of last Friday at the latest, “the Electoral Commission are satisfied there is no case to answer.” That struck me as odd, as only yesterday the Electoral Commission told me of the same case “We can confirm that our case review is on-going and that we have not yet reached a determination.“

I'll be honest – I would find it as worrying for a candidate to accept any funding at all from a union that represents employees in the organisation they intend to lead as I would find it if a candidate was taking money from a company with designs on winning contracts from that Commissioner. It revives in me a sense of horror I experienced over 20 years ago, when I first looked at US campaign finance, which I thought shocking even though at that time a Presidential candidate's expenditure was not measured in billions of dollars, as it is today.

But my concern is not simply that Commissioners may end up beholden to interests other than the public interest. I am not suggesting Mitt Romney has done something wrong. With his personal wealth he would not need to, but that very wealth is what has sustained him through two shots at the Republican nomination for President, in my view to the cost of better candidates, such as Mike Huckabee.

I am worried by every step we take down the path of limiting elected office to those who have the cash or can get it from some vested interest. As the Returning Officers take the last of the £5,000 deposits today, it strikes me that this is a trend in politics that we need to avoid.

 

Posted in Perspectives | Tagged | 7 Comments

Candidate Statement of Tam Macpherson

Posted on 17/10/2012 by samchapman

Tam Macpherson is standing as an Independent Candidate for Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon and Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

Introduction

As an Independent Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) I will represent and reflect the interests of residents and businesses by scrutinising the performance of Devon & Cornwall Police Service and, where necessary, through the Chief Constable, hold senior police officers to account in their local areas.

 

The relationship between the Police, Criminal Justice System (CJS) and politics is close, complex and highly controversial, yet very important in terms of governance. With the principle aim of bringing the voice of the people into policing and the justice system, tackling the things that you say are important, we must ensure that party politics are not part of the equation.

 

Manifesto – in brief

 

As PCC, I will work with existing Safety Partnerships at the causes and effects of crime in the community. The Chief Constable will be expected to meet local priorities in reducing crime, anti-social behaviour and the fear of crime in the community. Our police service should not be permitted to become aligned with the priorities of a political party.

 

I am conscious of the current prevailing economic conditions being faced by households, the public sector and private businesses the length of the West Country. The realities of a fixed budget and staff reduction imposed on the Devon & Cornwall Police Service, understanding day to day police officer deployment and service levels, together with local priorities in expenditure, will be key and vitally important in the role of PCC.

 

I support, in principle, the proposed government reforms to the CJS. Changes, at a local level, that should build on focusing legal aid where most needed, toughen up community sentences with more onerous curfews and offenders fines used to support victims and witnesses. I welcome the PCC having a direct input with the local Probation Trust and Attendance Centres.

 

Accepting we are in a period of austerity, and by maintaining the operational independence of the Chief Constable, the police service and CJS, we will ensure that the influence on their performance is community not political party based.

 

Furthermore a police service must connect and be identifiable at a local level. Serious consideration should be given to establishing two separate, operationally independent, police services for Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly and Devon. This proposal, audited at a local level then presented to the Home Office, when implemented, should bring clarity of identity, representation and confidence in police services within their respective communities.

 

I am a strong supporter of front line police officers but doubt the even-handedness of the processes that direct the police service. I believe that the inclusion of a strong community voice will go a long way to reducing the impact of the red tape hindering the effectiveness of the police service

 

Conclusion

 

As an Independent PCC, I will ask probing and testing questions of the police and the CJS and in doing so hold those responsible to account. Through a balance of transparency and scrutiny I will achieve an improved police service and a more effective justice system. I will do this on behalf of the residents and businesses of Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and also for visitors to our area.

 

“The future of our police service and justice system should not be decided on the crack of a partisan whip or the colour of a party rosette!”

http://www.tam4police.co.uk/

Promoted by & on behalf of Tam Macpherson, 65 Union Street, Plymouth, PL1 3LU

 

Posted in Candidate Statements, Independents | Tagged | 2 Comments