COMMENT: Even Tories don’t care about police commissioners (From South Wales Argus)

COMMENT: Even Tories don’t care about police commissioners

12:40pm Thursday 6th September 2012 in News By Kevin Ward - Editor

IT STRIKES us as a bit peculiar that the government policy to introduce police and crime commissioners seems to have been forgotten by the very people who proposed it.

Let’s remember this is not some minor tinkering to our police forces – it is a major change.

Where currently police authorities, whose membership is drawn from the communities they serve, decide priorities, set budgets and hire and fire chief constables, this will become the responsibility of one elected police and crime commissioner in each force area.

But as we draw closer to the November elections the amount of engagement by the Tory party in particular, appears to be totally lacking.

Locally, Gwent Tories are running a paper candidate, in recognition that this is an unwinnable fight but also illustrating a total lack of appetite for the campaign.

For those who question whether this is a worthwhile policy in the first place, this confirms our view.

And given the government seems to have washed its hands of it, it doesn’t fill us with confidence that even they think it is a good idea.

There is no additional funding for the elections across the country, the cost of which will run to millions.

Three months ago we expressed concern about the lack of public debate.

Now we are concerned about the apparent lack of interest at the top.