The home front

UNLIKE a succession of Labour Home Secretaries who believed, naively, that crime could be cut by gimmick, Theresa May's desire to give frontline police greater responsibility, and scale back any unnecessary bureaucracy, is a refreshing change of emphasis, that is to be welcomed.
By The Newsroom
Published 19th May 2010, 23:09 BST
Updated 19th May 2010, 23:09 BST

It can only be hoped that the Government is consistent with this

approach which has the potential to free up officers to spend more time on the beat fighting crime and reassuring the public. Yet there are contradictions in Mrs May's approach. The Tory plan, for example, to pave the way for directly-elected police commissioners threatens to politicise policing – and it could also mean a return, in some constabularies, of the oppressive procedures that she is scaling back.

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The police have to apply the law consistently if they are to retain the

public's confidence. Likewise, it would be counter-productive, and dangerous, if a commissioner was elected who held extreme views.

Furthermore, Mrs May needs to recognise that the most effective policies will be those that tackle the intertwined issues of drugs and reoffending. The majority of crimes are committed by serial offenders in order to fuel their addiction to drugs. Yet, while the police can readily identify these miscreants, they are, invariably, powerless to protect the public, in spite of the record volume of criminal justice legislation that was passed by New Labour.

A primary reason is the foreshortening of prison sentences – and the fact that jails have been allowed, according to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, to become "colleges of crime" rather than institutions which enable offenders to curb their criminality. This has to change if Mrs May's measures are to lead to streets safer for all.

Related topics:Theresa MayNew LabourGovernment