Resources, recruitment and local control will solve policing problems - Labour should stop spinning (Leeds Liberal Democrats)

Leeds Liberal Democrats <info@leedslibdems.org.uk>

Resources, recruitment and local control will solve policing problems - Labour should stop spinning

November 4, 2003 12:00 AM

Liberal Democrats welcome today's police reform green paper but gimmicks won't help communities get better policing.

Cllr David Morton, Leeds Liberal Democrat Member of the West Yorkshire Police Authority said "The YEP's 'Force in Crisis' campaign has highlighted many of the challenges facing the police here in Leeds. That's why I welcome today's green paper from David Blunkett. However I do wonder if we aren't just getting more gimmicks."

"Electing police authorities is a nice idea but will make little difference if we don't get more resources and officers. Asking people to vote on their priorities is all very well but shifting money from one stretched area to another is like trying to bale out a badly holed boat."

"The first thing local people would do if they had power over the police is to scrap all the Government's centrally imposed targets, wouldn't it be quicker if the Government just stopped imposing them?"

"With even Labour MP's admitting that the West Yorkshire funding formula is unfair, and with West Yorks police 900 officers short of the metropolitan average we shouldn't allow David Blunkett to distract us with the latest gimmick."

Notes

1. The Home Secretary will unveil his Policing green paper at today's Association of Police Authorities conference in Manchester. Cllr David Morton will be attending.

2. 82% of police funding in West Yorkshire comes from the Government

3. Police Authorities are currently appointed from local councillors, magistrates and lay people appointed by the home office