I am delighted to have been selected to stand for South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner on behalf of the Conservative Party.

I must firstly say, that despite the Party endorsement, I very firmly believe that this is NOT a party political role. I will be signing an oath of impartiality which guarantees that I will not be influenced by Government, the Opposition parties or the unions. We must not play politics with public safety. That is immoral. That's not British policing. This is a unique and special opportunity to improve our police force on behalf of the people it serves; not a stick for political parties to beat each other with and must never be used to interfere with the Chief Constable's operational  control. I will of course fight for budgets, as strongly as any candidate is vowing to do, so that the police force can be of maximum effect in reducing crime. In return I will expect the police force to deliver on that.

I've spent my entire working life within the criminal justice system. I'm currently an independent member of the Parole Board ensuring public safety is a priority when making decisions regarding a prisoner's release. I was a police officer with Greater Manchester Police for 30 years attaining the rank of Chief Inspector and latterly responsible for Criminal Justice Partnerships in Salford.

I had a successful career specialising in community policing, partnership working, crime reduction and domestic violence. I moved to become an Associate Trainer with the National Police Improvement Agency. I worked as a Neighbourhood renewal advisor supporting local partnerships in the delivery of regeneration and crime reduction working under contract to the then Labour government.

I completed secondments to both regional and national governments including Home Office Safer Cities Co-ordinator, managing the Regional Crime Reduction Team at a regional government office, and working on generating crime and disorder reduction activity across many regional programmes. I have regularly briefed ministers on these activities and drafted speeches on their behalf.

I have extensive experience of gun and gang culture, which we have seen, all too tragically in recent weeks, represents a continued threat to our communities. I have experience of working in deprived areas with correspondingly high crime levels including Labour heartland estates. I have international policing experience, including tough areas like New York and Philadelphia where I worked to share best practice between U.K police forces and their American counterparts. On behalf of the British Government I visited Chicago to work with the Mayor and others to explore policing and housing policies.

I have the courage to take difficult decisions which will be necessary in the role of Police and Crime Commissioner. Unlike my opponents however, I have real experience of the role of a police officer and this gives me the means and the credibility to create effective working relationships with officers, officials and partners. Critically, I have the necessary insight to tackle inefficient working practices on the behalf of South Yorkshire people.

Contemporary negative press surrounding the police does highlight a need for us to recognise and challenge mistakes but they should not be allowed to shackle our force. We must work to ensure that officers are able to achieve maximum efficiency in reducing crime whilst ensuring public confidence and pride in South Yorkshire Police.

Many candidates talk of returning officers to "front line policing". These are empty words unless you have the ability to identify exactly what that front line is and have the bravery to say what it is not. I have the skills and experience to work with the public, the police and their partners to identify and prioritise exactly where our resources are needed and I have the courage to take decisions to make sure they get there.

My aim will be giving safety back to the public by giving strength back to the Force. 

Printed and promoted by Vonny Watts on behalf of Nigel Bonson both of South Yorkshire Conservatives, 1b South Terrace, Moorgate Street, Rotherham. S60 2EU