Despite record policing numbers delivered by this Conservative government and record funding, the Labour Police and Crime Commissioner has failed to combat crime in our communities and in our borough. I am in no doubt that my constituents and residents across Solihull borough have been let down by successive Labour Police and Crime Commissioners. With a record uplift to almost £800m there really is no excuse. The rising levels of crime leaves me under no illusion that we are being short-changed. None of us should have to fear for our lives, families, or our property.
I am writing to fully support the merger of the roles of the West Midlands Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). I firmly believe that the Mayoral model is best placed to succeed in holding West Midlands Police to account, and ultimately to make citizens’ lives safer.
The current consultation is about getting the structure of Police governance right for the citizens of Meriden and the wider West Midlands, and to end the worrying escalation residents are seeing in local crime. The West Midlands have tried the PCC model and for 12 years it has failed to deliver. despite in recent years the West Midlands Police actually seeing an increase in funding, with recruitment significantly boosting Police numbers. We have over 1,300 new police officers but my constituents have made it clear that they are not seeing any benefit. This is a question of resource allocation and poor decision-making by the Police and Crime Commissioner.
Crime in the West Midlands has more than doubled over the past eight years, and I believe that a Mayor/PCC combined role, as in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and London, would empower the Mayor to be in a stronger position both to hold the West Midlands Police force to account, and to advocate for the issues that matter to communities here in the West Midlands.
Transferring PCC powers to the Mayoralty will enable the Mayor to use all of the policy levers at their disposal to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour (ASB) in the region.
It would enable a more joined-up approach as crime prevention could be considered when allocating regeneration funding, enabling the combined role to ‘design out’ crime and ASB on our high streets, and innovative skills programmes to rehabilitate offenders and tackle the root causes of crime could be developed.
It would also allow a renewed, relentless focus on making our public transport network safer, with the Safer Travel Team already based at the West Midlands Combined Authority HQ.
Decisions on the future of the Police estate in the West Midlands would no longer be taken in isolation but looked at in the context of place-based regeneration. I am confident that this would mean a Mayor with Police and Crime Commissioner responsibilities would recognise the importance of a permanent, accessible police base in Solihull and Chelmsley Wood. Currently, the resourcing decisions made by the Police and Crime Commissioner have left our community isolated and unable to access the full range of police services. This has left criminals feeling that they have carte blanche to carry out criminal activities across the borough.
In addition, the Mayor has a unique convening power and a broader range of powers to pull different public services together, and a merger would save costs by reducing the cost to the taxpayer of running separate offices.
Indeed, the Government’s own Levelling Up White Paper has said that Mayoral control of PCC functions where boundaries align is a key priority in keeping the public safe and healthy.
I would also ask that the Mayor’s role should not be paid any extra for taking on the responsibilities, saving taxpayers the cost of the PCC allowance.
In conclusion, the merger would create a single, directly-elected, point of accountability for the region. Given the success of the model in the West Midlands, with billions of pounds of investment – public and private – brought into the region as a direct result of the Mayoral Combined Authority model, I believe it’s time the same successful approach to crime and policing is applied.
