£2m cost of would-be crime tsars

THREE out of four of the winning candidates in elections for Yorkshire’s new police and crime commissioners outspent their rivals, new statistics have revealed.
Lord Prescott during the vote count for the Police and Crime Commissioner in the Humberside Police AreaLord Prescott during the vote count for the Police and Crime Commissioner in the Humberside Police Area
Lord Prescott during the vote count for the Police and Crime Commissioner in the Humberside Police Area

Candidates in the elections for the newly-created positions spent a total of £2.1m across the country in the final five weeks before the polls last November, according to the Electoral Commission.

The 191 hopefuls paid out an average of £11,220 in the “regulated” period before the elections, during which time spending and donations over £50 were monitored.

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The watchdog’s data showed the candidate who spent most was Craig MacKinlay in Kent, who paid out £98,751.46 for a campaign that was ultimately unsuccessful. The winning candidate, Ann Barnes, spent £64,676.

One of the successful PCC candidates yesterday criticised the new roles, saying commissioners were less able to hold police to account than the police authorities they replaced.

Former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott racked up a £23,485.55 bill in his bid to become police and crime commissioner for Humberside, with the eventual PCC, Tory Matthew Grove, spending £28,293.90. Their rival, Ukip candidate Godfrey Bloom, spent £40,749.89 on his campaign which saw him come third in the polls.

The three other Yorkshire races saw the winning candidate spent more on their campaigns than their rivals for the PCC position, created by the Government to provide “stronger and more transparent accountability of the police”.

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In West Yorkshire, Labour’s Mark Burns-Williamson spent £15,786 in the period before the polls, while nearest rival, independent Cedric Christie, spent £13,919.

South Yorkshire’s Labour PCC Shaun Wright spent £20,578, while the next highest spend was by Liberal Democrat Robert Teal at £2,822.

Conservative candidate Julia Mulligan spent £17,102 winning the PCC election in North Yorkshire, with her only rival, Labour’s Ruth Potter, spending just £1,664.

Most would-be PCCs came in under the spending limit for their force area, with 70 per cent of candidates spending under 10 per cent of the limit for their region, and none spent more than half the maximum.

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The highest spending limit was in the West Midlands force area at £357,435, but the seven candidates spent a combined total of just £58,395.20.

The next highest spending limits were £356,204 in Greater Manchester, £303,303 in Thames Valley and £287,255 in West Yorkshire, the Electoral Commission said.

The figures showed that the three candidates who spent most on advertising were Raj Chandran in Nottinghamshire with a total of £28,550; Jas Parmar in Bedfordshire with £25,655.93 and Adam Simmonds in Northamptonshire with £16,314.78.

In terms of donations above £50, the three candidates who received the most were Kent candidate Mr Mackinlay who was given £97,856.95; Ken Maddock in Avon and Somerset who received £58,925.88 and John Dwyer in Cheshire who was donated £43,564.58.

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The Commission also published a report on PCC election spending, which found that although current spending limits are much higher that the amounts candidates spent, it is too early to recommend a reduction for the next polls in 2016, which could attract more attention as they will be held on the same day as local government and Welsh national assembly elections.

The study comes as Bob Jones, police and crime commissioner for the West Midlands, claimed there was “no evidence” his role was an improvement on the old police authority system.

Writing in the Guardian, Mr Jones, who also spent more than his rivals during the election, said: “Commissioners are higher profile but actually have fewer tools to hold their force to account.

“PCCs have weaker appointment and dismissal powers than police authorities, having lost the ability to appoint and dismiss deputy and assistant chief constables. Despite only having powers over chief constables, a lot is happening that causes concern.”

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He added: “Commissioners have generally made police collaboration to find savings more difficult. In my view, short-term political considerations have greater weight than long-term sustainability in many PCC policing budgets.

“This is a by-product of political immediacy where directly elected politicians want to see eye-catching gimmicks for the electorate.”