George Osborne's austerity is costing UK an extra £76bn, says IMF
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/oct/13/imf-george-osborne-austerity-76bn
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Sunday, 14 October 2012
Article: George Osborne's austerity is costing UK an extra £76bn, says IMF
George Osborne's austerity is costing UK an extra £76bn, says IMF
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/oct/13/imf-george-osborne-austerity-76bn
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Thursday, 4 October 2012
Police Commissioner election problems
From the Spectator 25th September
There are three interesting things going on with the police. The first is the new National Crime Agency, which will kick off this time next year. The second is the police and crime commissioner elections… where I hope for higher rather than lower turnout. Finally is community level policing, which I have seen bring a very big reduction in crime in my constituency’.
It’s interesting that ministers are still trying to talk up the turnout: in private, those close to the reforms are concerned they won’t even get 15 per cent.
The research by the think-tank Policy Exchange also suggested politicians were considered least suitable for the role from a choice of six backgrounds, which included ex-military officers.
A YouGov poll of 1,711 people said 34% thought PCCs were a "good idea".
The Home Office said PCCs would "give a voice to the public".
PCCs will replace police authorities in 41 areas in November.
They will have powers to hire and fire chief constables, set police force budgets and commission some criminal justice services.
Of those questioned, 34% said they were a "bad idea" and 32% "didn't know".
Even Conservative voters are not convinced, with only 44% of the survey's 396 Tory respondents saying they were a "good idea".
The poll results are a blow to the government which has championed the idea of PCCs as a way of making the police more accountable.
Ordinary people
They are likely to fuel concerns about a low public turn-out when polling for the Police and Crime Commissioners takes place on 15 November.
There were particularly strong views among people who had had contact with police or been a victim of crime in the past year, with about 40% saying PCCs would be a "bad idea".
When asked who would make the best PCCs, 6% said former government ministers, MPs and senior politicians would, with 7% saying local councillors and local politicians and 13% saying those with business experience.
A majority of those surveyed, 59%, thought former police officers would be the best candidates, while 29% favoured ordinary people with an interest in the issues, and 26% wanting someone with a military background.
A further 16% said they did not know who would make the best candidate.
But the Home Office said it was confident that as PCC elections approached, the public will respond positively.
"We believe that the more people hear about this reform, including from candidates who are only now being selected, the more they will like it," a spokesman said.
He added, "PCCs will give a voice to the public, strengthening the fight against crime and helping to ensure that local communities are kept safe.
"As we approach the elections, local and national media interest will grow, and we also intend to run a high profile information campaign to ensure that people know about this important change."
Young offenders
Labour published its list of candidates on Monday which included only one former police officer - Ron Hogg, who is standing in Durham.
There were nine serving or former police authority members - who are not police officers - and seven former government ministers or MPs. The list also included a number of councillors and community figures.
The Conservatives have still to decide who all of their candidates are, but the one leading police figure who wanted to stand, Jan Berry, the former chairman of the Police Federation, has not been selected.
One of the few ex-army officers to express an interest in the job, Colonel Tim Collins, has pulled out.
The policies which voters said would make them more likely to vote for a PCC were moving officers into neighbourhood policing teams, seizing more assets from convicted criminals and keeping police stations open.
The most important crime priorities for PCCs were anti-social behaviour and disorder, making the police more visible in the community and dealing more effectively with young offenders.
Only a minority, 20%, said they would be prepared to pay more council tax so more could be spent on policing.
Useful Q and A on Police Commissioner elections http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-19504639
Introductory video to Police Commissioners http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19341030
Introductory video to Police Commissioners http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19341030
Monday, 1 October 2012
The Winsor Review
On 1 October 2010, the UK Home Secretary, Theresa May MP, announced that Winsor was to carry out a review of police pay and conditions. The purpose stated was to improve service for the public and maximise value for money.
The review was given the job of making recommendations about the pay and conditions of the 43 established police forces in England and Wales
The first part report was published by the Home Office on 8 March 2011.
Broadly, it recommended savings of £1.1 billion from the police pay bill over three years September 2011 - September 2014, with £485 million going to the taxpayer and £625 million being redirected to "front-line policing".
The report suggested that the pay budget should be redistributed in such a way that some police officers would receive pay cuts whilst other officers would benefit details here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16475119
The Association of Chief Police Officers welcomed the Part 1 report and said that it hoped it would lay lasting foundations for the police service. The Police Federation said that it would oppose the proposals as an unprecedented attack on police pay and conditions
The Part 2 report, the Final Report of the review, was published on 15 March 2012. It contains recommendations of a much longer-term nature, including linking pay to performance rather than time-service, payment for the acquisition and use of accredited professional policing skills, the creation of a power akin to a right of police forces to make police officers redundant even if they have not yet attained full pensionable service, higher educational qualifications required of recruits, fast-track promotion to inspector rank for the most promising internal and external candidates, direct entry at superintendent rank for individuals of exceptional achievement in other sectors, compulsory fitness tests for all officers, a more rigorous regime applying to officers on restricted duties (i.e. those who are unable to fulfil all the requirements of a police officer), a new retirement age of 60 for police officers,
The Police Federation reacted adversely to the Part 2 report, telling the Home Secretary that its contents had placed Police Federation members in a state of "utter dismay, consternation and disillusion". It said that "what Winsor is suggesting goes far beyond reform and threatens to undermine the very foundations of British policing and the public we serve".
The Police Superintendents' Association of England and Wales said "This is a serious and significant report that has major and long-term implications for the Police Service, individual officers and staff and for the public we serve. At over one thousand pages and containing one hundred and twenty-one recommendations it is important to carefully analyse the Report before passing judgement on individual recommendations. ... This Report comes at a time when police officers and staff face real cuts in pay of £160 million as a result of the first part of Mr Winsor’s Review, a three-year pay freeze, increased pension contributions, a 20% cut in funding and the loss of 34,000 officers and staff which has led to a serious erosion of morale. It is important therefore to recognise that the publication of the final report marks the start of a detailed process involving all parts of the Service and the Government that will look at the long-term consequences, practicalities and cost involved. We now await the decision of the Home Secretary in respect of the recommendations and the time-scales for implementation and look forward to playing a full part in determining the future of policing.”
Further details can be found at the following links:
After the review Winsor was controversially appointed Chief Inspector of Constabulary.
Police and the Coalition
Home Secretaries and the Police have typically enjoyed a contentious relationship, and the current situation has proved itself to be no different, if not considerably worse.
Much of the current contention stems from the effect of central Government cuts to police budgets, as part of wider moves to address the so-called fiscal deficit.
Police concern has grown at both the level and nature of cuts made to local budgets, which have led to reductions the number of resources available and the number of officers in post, leading to falling morale and increased workloads.
The Coalition ultimately disagrees with the Opposition about the extent and impact of police budget cuts, with the Prime Minister and Home Secretary responding that front-line officer numbers would be protected, if not increased, and that more efficient restructuring of constabularies would achieve this simultaneously with cost savings.
Under the wide-ranging Winsor Review into pay and conditions for police officers and staff commissioned by the Home Secretary in 2010, the first report into short-term changes to be made to police pay has suggested an overhaul of the current pay structures to reward performance, risk, skill level and those officers working unsocial hours. The report’s author has maintained that police face low morale because of the discontent they feel with the inequalities that exist within the current pay structures, which arguably offer “equal pay for unequal work”.
However, the Police Federation has conducted its own survey of lower ranking officers which suggested that if the Winsor recommendations are implemented, morale would fall even further. The Government has sought to tackle head on the widely-recgonised ‘toxic’ issue of police pay, but has clearly faced discontent.
In real terms, numbers of police on the street, in front line roles, have fallen by 6,000, bringing the uniformed presence on streets down to its lowest level in a decade in England and Wales. Additionally, Home Office figures also show that a further 9,000 police staff roles and 907 Community Support Officers have been cut in the past year.
At the heart of this, the Government would argue that ‘necessary’ cuts can be offset by restructuring to shift more officers to the so-called front line from the so-called back office, but opposition figures dispute definitions of the roles, and argue for the maintenance of crucial support to support front line policing.
A central pillar of the Government’s police reforms have been the introduction of Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), which would replace Police Authorities who currently have oversight for constabularies in England and Wales. With elections due to be held later this year, the role of PCCs still remains unclear, with Ministers emphasising the operational independence: the Welsh Chief Constables have been most outpoken in their criticism
However, critics warn of the increasing likelihood of politicising policing and the potential for extremism, with PCCs competing for office on political platforms. Candidates include former Deputy PM John Prescott for the Humberside Constabulary, but there are growing fears that the positions could attract more right-wing and populist candidates. Others reportedly interested in the roles include former model Katie Price, and former Crimewatch presenter Nick Ross.
While PCCs would supposedly have no operational influence, the job would allow the individual to set the strategic direction of a police force, and would enable them to appoint (and sack) Chief Officers. There are concerns that the PCC role would ultimately become inherently political and populist, and attract wild rhetoric and controversial figures at the expense of rational and proportionate leadership for under-staffed and overstretched police constabularies. The rationale for the Government behind such a policy is to reduce costs by abolishing large Police Authorities and through investing the power of oversight in a democratically elected individual.
The appointment of Tom Winsor as Inspectorate of Constabulary has also proved to be controversial; he is the first person to hold the post without having served as a police officer. A view from the left and serving police officers can be found here Tories declare war on the police
The appointment of Tom Winsor as Inspectorate of Constabulary has also proved to be controversial; he is the first person to hold the post without having served as a police officer. A view from the left and serving police officers can be found here Tories declare war on the police
There is an odd paradox with the Coalition’s policy on policing. One the one hand, the Conservatives have traditionally been cast as the party of law and order, personal responsibility, and as champions of strong institutions to support this. The Liberal Democrats’ policy has been less clear, given that before the last general election they were never considered as serious political contenders in the work of Government.
However, the resulting policy towards policing has been a confusing one, with police being unable to shield themselves from the axe to public sector spending, facing controversial and wide ranging reforms to pay structures in a bid to modernise forces and save money. On top of this, the Government is also pursuing a populist, American-style accountability arrangement.
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