Privatisation of policing.
I can absolutely confirm that I do not support the
privatising of the police. Policing is a public service and must remain
so. Police officers must be accountable to the public and must police by consent.
I have been a police officer for 30 years and will defend that to the hilt.
The last government introduced legislation that allowed the roles
of transport and custody of prisoners to be transferred to private contractors.
I am acutely aware of the way in which these things can creep and I would not
let that happen in South Yorkshire.
I have been impressed to find that South Yorkshire Police have
already set up some excellent collaboration arrangements with adjoining forces,
involving some sharing of specialist resources and some joint procurement
arrangements that provide savings. This I support and am keen, if elected, to
explore further opportunities.
Indeed, as I said at a Business Forum only last Friday, when it
comes to increasing purchasing power, if there are savings to be made then we
must not be restricted to bargaining with adjacent forces.
In relation to work behind the scenes – things like
administration, IT and maintenance – if savings can be made by collaborating
with other police forces, other emergency services, local authorities, or in
appropriate cases private companies, they must be considered. Budgets are
exceedingly tight and must not be wasted. The more that can be used to provide
the policing that the people want, the better.
To suggest that you should not vote for me because I believe in
privatising the police force is just ridiculous.
Nigel Bonson
No comments:
Post a Comment