Statement from Bob Jones on the proposed transfer of police funding to the Independent Police Complaints Commission. Bob Jones said, I 100% support the principle that the police should not be investigating serious cases involving other police officers. This has been my position for many years and throughout the debates about events in Downing Street involving Andrew Mitchell and other recent cases. With regards to the investigation that followed the meeting in Sutton Coldfield, I regret the Independent Police Complaints Commission’s decision to turn down requests for either an independent or managed investigation, which could have avoided the sorry saga we saw at yesterday’s Home Affairs Select Committee evidence session. It would therefore be right to seek to provide additional resources to a credible organisation outside the police. However, the government’s approach is to take money from existing police services and give it to the IPCC. By doing so, the government will be transferring money from West Midlands Police, an organisation whose anti-corruption unit and professional standards department secured the dismissal of 21 officers in the last eighteen months, to the IPCC, an organisation with a blemished track record and limited credibility. This would be throwing good money after bad, and compounding the challenging financial position that we and other forces face. The cut to West Midlands Police could amount to £3 million. This would be more than the cost of the entire professional standards department and anti-corruption unit, which is about £2.7 million. It would simply not be possible to close the function entirely, as this would mean the cessation of proactive work, and the ability to respond effectively and locally to lower level complaints would be damaged. There is a risk that if cases cannot be dealt with quickly and locally, complainants will be dissatisfied and cases will escalate, further increasing the IPCC workload, as well as overall costs. I will be writing to the Home Secretary both to protest at the principle of her approach, but also to ask her to justify the amount of the top slice. She previously asked HM Inspectorate of Constabulary to review what local professional standards and complaints activity could be transferred to the IPCC but has refused to release the report, which should be in the public domain. I will ask her to release the report as it is clearly a pivotal document, and is needed to justify the value of the top slice and determine whether it is fair. Investment is needed in a structure that ensures police officers do not have to investigate serious cases against them, but I fundamentally believe that this should not be at the expense of undermining more effective local efforts. Given the IPCCs limited credibility with the public, the police service and those responsible for the governance of policing, any such investment would be better spent on a completely new body unburdened by the tarnished reputation and track record of the IPCC.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 12:02:24 +0000
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