Time is running out if the police and the government are to restore public trust in policing, the Chief Inspector of Constabulary has warned.
In his annual report, Andy Cooke said police forces were experiencing “one of their biggest crises in living memory”.
Cooke, the former chief constable of Merseyside Police – who interestingly has a BA in politics – went on to remark about “atrocious” crimes committed by officers while too few criminals were being caught.
“The public expectation of policing is that they prevent crime, they investigate crime properly, that they’re in the communities, they’re visible, that they answer 999 calls quickly. These are all the basics of policing.”
His report also noted that the force were having to pick up the slack for other public services, and they have had trouble vetting new recruits. He also goes on to talk about officers abusing their position for sexual purposes.
As ever the Labour Party had to immediately chime in, with shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper calling the report “truly damning”
She went on “These include systemic failings in policing and a totally dysfunctional criminal-justice system, with more criminals getting away with crimes, victims let down, vital neighbourhood policing devastated, record numbers of forces in special measures, and confidence in policing falling.” There seems to be a theme emerging here.
Cooke, like outgoing Police Scotland supremo Iain Livingstone, appears to have the scent of political ambition hanging over him. Both are evidently careerists who have heavily criticised the very institution they have spent their careers working in.
As for the likes of Cooper and the Labour party, yes she’s correct in her assessment of the Tories, but she and her side of the political divide that brush off terrorist attacks as “part and parcel of living in a major city”, shriek if the cops arrest to many ‘BAME’ people, don’t condemn left wing violence in general and are probably happy enough with the stringent scrutiny of potential police recruits seeing people rejected for posting the ‘wrong’ opinions on Facebook.
The Homeland Party would keep politics out of policing and the scrutiny would be placed on potential chief inspectors, not the social media activity of a 21 year old recruit.
