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Pressure mounts over G4S contract (From Watford Observer)
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Police commissioner candidate speaks out over potential G4S contract
4:18pm Monday 3rd September 2012 in News
By Mike Wright, Chief Reporter
Pressure is mounting on Herfordshire Constabulary's plans to its hand back office functions to beleaguered security giant G4S after another political party threatened to veto the deal.
Hertfordshire’s Liberal Democrat party has said it would throw out proposals to outsource to G4S if it wins the police crime and commissioner election in November.
The move comes after Labour’s candidate for the £75,000-a-year role, Sherma Batson, said she would block all outsourcing of police services if elected.
The Conservative candidate, David Lloyd, widely considered to be the frontrunner, said he would still consider the G4S deal, despite the fiasco caused by the company failing to supply enough security staff to the Olympic games.
Speaking today, Chris White, the Lib Dem police spokesperson, said: "The astonishing news that Herts, Beds and Cambridgeshire constabularies will be pressing ahead with this privatisation is likely to lead to a collapse in public confidence in policing in the three counties.
"Even before the Olympics fiasco, the record of G4S was questionable. Policing is a public sector service and should not normally be handed over to private companies - especially private companies which are known not to deliver.
"I don't want to see the army being called in to Hertfordshire to perform basic policing."
Hertfordshire, Cambridge and Bedfordshire police forces are all planning to hand functions such as human resources, finance, ICT, procurement and corporate communications.
The final decision over the proposals has been delayed due to concerns raised over G4S by the problems at the Olympics, which saw the army and officers from forces including Hertfordshire scrambled to sure up security at the games.
This means it will be decided by whoever becomes the county’s first elected commissioner after the November 15 election.
Comments(7)
drunkenduck
says...
7:52pm Mon 3 Sep 12
John Dowdle
says...
10:25pm Mon 3 Sep 12
On a whole range of areas, I frankly do not trust the likes of G4S, who have proved themselves unreliable and untrustworthy to handle our personal information.
LSC
says...
1:29pm Tue 4 Sep 12
The police have a job to do like 99% of other jobs. My local supermarket is not run under a Tory policy. The Chinese take-away is not famous for it's Lib-Dem outlook on the food it serves. Labour holds no influence on the way my local Taxi firm operates.
The police have a job to do: Uphold the law. They do not MAKE the law; THAT is the job for politicians. They do not practice the law; that is the job of courts.
So how can the personal political leanings of a Commisioner possibly make a difference? It's a job. Uphold the law and keep the peace as effectively as possible within a budget.
There is no grey area to that; there's no 'Tory way of policing' no 'Labour would have made that arrest but the Lib Dems wouldn't'.
I just don't get it.
John Dowdle
says...
1:55pm Tue 4 Sep 12
I think political ideologies will probably not have much to do with this new role.
The idea - as understand it - is for the new Commissioners to consult with local people and then set policing priorities for the police service.
It is then the job of the Chief Constable to ensure that the police service is structured in such a way as to ensure that the priorities and targets set for the service are met. How this is achieved on a day-to-day basis is solely under the control of the Chief Constable.
LSC
says...
4:24pm Tue 4 Sep 12
Dear Police.
Please try to catch criminals.
Please do so lawfully.
Please put out a presence that acts as a deterrent.
Please put together evidence correctly for the CPS.
Please try to stay within your budget.
Please do not victimise or ignore certain sections of the community.
Er, that's pretty much it. Do I get £75k now?
John Dowdle
says...
11:25am Wed 5 Sep 12
Reg Edit says...
4:30pm Mon 3 Sep 12
Surely it is for an elected representative to actually look at the facts and make a decision based on them in the interest of the people of Hertfordshire? That seems only common sense.
To rule out outsourcing now, on the back of a totally unrelated Olympics job, is playing to the gallery with no thought for what is right or wrong for the people of Herts. Maybe it would be a good thing for us to outsource to G4S, and then again maybe it wouldn't. The point is, I don't have enough information to make that call, and neither does the Labour or Liberal parties, yet they have ruled it out, whether it is the right thing to do or not. Shallow fools.
Libs and Labour playing to the gallery, eh? No surprise there then.
As a UKIP supporter, I would hope that the elected politician would do what is right in policing Hertfordshire, rather than what is easy or politically expedient. The police do a reasonably good job, particularly in some areas, but could improve in others. I hope whoever gets elected does what is right rather than what looks good to their friends and supporters.
Woe betide us if one of these fools actually gets elected!