At the beginning of the week it was announced that the Labour Deputy Leader and councillor for Skirbeck Ward had been selected to replace Phil Dilks as the party candidate for Lincolnshire after he stood down because of a past criminal offence.
The second candidate from Boston is English Democrat group leader Elliott Fountain, who announced his candidacy some time ago, and who represents Fenside.
It’s just 56 days to the elections for the post - and so far it seems to have been one of the best kept secrets in the county.
Many people are questioning why our 41 forces need a “civilian” Police Commissioner – and also why the job is being targeted by the main political parties.
The PCCs, as they will be known, will have the job scrutinising their force and holding it to account. They will also be able to hire and fire the chief constable and set the force budget.
They will be paid between £65,000 - £100,000 depending on the size of the force, and are supposed to empower local people into having a say about how crime is tackled in their area.
The final list of candidates will be announced on 19th October.
Lincolnshire Police covers an area of more than 2,280 square miles, serving a population of about 646,000 - and the first job for the new commissioner will be to decide whether to pursue a planned deal with the firm G4S – of the Olympics security fiasco fame - to build and part-run a police station near Lincoln. Two-thirds of the force’s civilian staff were transferred to G4S in April as part of a £200 million ten-year outsourcing contract.
However, financial restraints – Lincolnshire Police has to find savings of £20m by 2015 – and strong opposition to the idea, may make the decision academic, as it is thought that postponing the decision will make it unaffordable for in the long term.
And according to HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, Lincolnshire is one of three police forces which may not be able to provide a "sufficiently efficient or effective service" in the future.
The candidates so far are:
Mervyn Barrett – Independent (http://www.mervynbarrettobe.co.uk/) – who has spent 30 years working for a crime reduction charity and is a former editor of Safer Society, a journal for debating practical measures to create a safer, more just and humane society. He has backed the force's decision to contract some services to G4S, and says he hopes the role of PCC will make the force more "democratically accountable" to the people it serves.
David Bowles – Independent (http://davidbowles.org.uk/) – is a former chief executive of Lincolnshire County Council, and was also chairman of the United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust. He said his first priority would be to look at the funding of the force and work to ensure it is sustainable going forward.
Richard Davies – Conservative (http://www.votedavies.co.uk/) – was born and raised in Lincolnshire and in 2009 was elected as a Lincolnshire county councillor and soon afterwards joined Lincolnshire Police Authority. He said he believed his "no-nonsense approach" would help prevent crime, reduce people's fear of lawlessness and "offer the public genuine reassurance about the way their communities are policed".
Elliott Fountain – English Democrats (no website) – has said that being the youngest candidate gives him an edge over his rivals as he could relate to young people.
The 33-year-old has run his own businesses since leaving school. He has pledged to reduce crime in the county by targeting drug offences and also said he would try to find ways of making the force "tougher."
Paul Gleeson – Labour (no website) – was until recently responsible for arranging and giving legal advice to tribunals in four counties. He said he believed the main role of the commissioner was to highlight the day-to-day concerns of the public to the police. “Crime and disorder, anti-social behaviour, fly tipping and low morale are public priorities. I’ve seen first-hand where the system is failing and what needs to be done to change it.”
You can find out more about the candidates and compare one with another by visiting http://www.policeelections.com/candidates/lincolnshire/
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I see that many people are worried,that the post of elected Police Commissioner will be taken by a political stooge, representing only their own party and not the community as a whole, why else would a party candidate stand?.
ReplyDeleteAs I understand it once a law is enacted in this country its enforcement is supposed to be independant and free from political interference,but obviously not after these people are elected when some areas may well come under the direction of some quite extreme individuals both political and religious elected on a very very small turnout.