Exclusive: I wasn’t the best man for job says police tsar

Matthew Grove delivered one of the biggest surprises in the commissioner elections when he beat bookmakers’ favourite Lord Prescott to become the new supremo of Humberside Police.

He sparked a major row last week when he announced his intention to appoint fellow East Riding Conservative councillor Paul Robinson as his deputy, leading to allegations of “cronyism” and concerns about a potential conflict of interest over Coun Robinson’s refusal to give up his council seat.

But Coun Grove has now revealed he was not his own first choice and had spent “months” lobbying his deputy to stand for the top job.

He said: “When the issue of police and crime commissioner came up I didn’t actually consider myself as the first person I would put forward; I actually wanted Paul to be the police and crime commissioner and spent a lot of months trying to push Paul to stand as the Conservative candidate, so he was my first choice as PCC.

“He shares many of my concerns and values when it comes to policing issues and believes in being forceful and outspoken in representing this area.”

Explaining why he needed a deputy, he added: “I’m one politician with 920,000 residents, over 4,500 police officers and staff and a budget of £180m of public money and cover an area of 1,400 square miles.

“I’m already receiving requests to be in three places at the same time and I’ve made it very clear my job is to be out there with the public, but I can only divide myself so many times.”

Coun Grove has said he will resign his seat in the Mid Holderness ward at the “earliest appropriate opportunity”, believing it would not be in the best interests of voters or candidates to trigger a winter by-election, given the low turnout in the commissioner elections.

Coun Robinson said he intends to see out his four-year term as Howdenshire ward councillor because he does not want to “let down residents”.

He said he planned to work a four-day week as deputy commissioner, although Coun Grove insisted it was a “full-time job”.

Coun Robinson’s appointment would not come into effect until it passes a “confirmation hearing” of the police and crime panel, the body set up to scrutinise the commissioner.

This may not be straight forward as the 10-member Humberside panel has had a difficult birth. The three Hull councillors – two Labour and a Liberal Democrat – walked out of its first meeting last month claiming its composition may be “potentially unlawful” because of its political and geographical balance.

This issue has yet to be resolved, although talks are ongoing in a bid to resolve the impasse.

The confirmation hearing, which will be open to the public, had been expected to take place this coming Wednesday but has now been put back to next week.

Should Coun Robinson be
confirmed in the deputy’s role he would be topping up his £45,000 salary with the basic East
Riding councillor’s allowance of £10,711.

Until Coun Grove gives up his seat he will be earning this on top of his commissioner’s salary, a total of £85,711.