What a Waste

Today the results of the election of West Midlands police commissioner were announce together with the turn out for the by-election caused following the death last month of Bob Jones the former police commissioner for the region. The turn out figures were a disaster for Theresa May's and the Conservative led Governments flagship PCC legislation with just over one in ten bothering to vote. 

Police commissioner are elected representatives who are meant to ensure that police forces in England and Wales are running effectively, and are intended to bring a public voice and accountability to policing. Their role includes:

• Appointing chief constables of forces and dismissing them when necessary 
• Holding the chief constable to account for the performance of a force's officers and staff 
• Providing a link between the police and communities 
• Overseeing community safety and the reduction of crime, and ensuring value for money in policing 
• Setting out a force's strategy and policing priorities. 
• Setting out the force budget and community safety grants 
• Reporting annually on progress 

All roles once done by police authorities in the past which they have replaced. They get paid between £65,000 and £100,000 per year depending on the police force area, and although they take a oath of impartiality they are stand on political platforms being aligned with the main parties in the UK.

In total the tax payers of this country paid out some 3.7 million pounds for the election all of which seems to have been wasted on some Government folly. Of course those with an interest in promoting the role of police commissioners and the important work they feel do had excuse after excuse to defend the spending of so much money while those against it had a field day. Yvette Cooper, Shadow home secretary, tweeted: "Crazy that Theresa May's PCC legislation has meant election in August costing £3.7m where 9 out of 10 people didn't vote". Jack Dromey, the Labour party's spokesman on policing, said the by-election was "characterised by costly chaos and a record low turn out".

One has to wonder if this is a good use of tax payers money given so much could have been done with so much money, like employ extra policemen, employ more doctors or nurses, start up youth employment programmes in areas of high youth unemployment. Wasting the money on a role that one cares enough about to vote surely is a waste. You have to question any Government who wastes money, while cutting back on public spending and has introduced public sector pay freezes which have seen millions of people take cuts in standards of living and  hundreds of thousands of workers lose their jobs.