By Mark Smulian | 8 September 2011
Police authorities have condemned as ‘madness’ the government’s postponement of the elections for police commissioners.
These posts were to have been elected next May on the same day as scheduled local elections.But as part of a deal with Liberal Democrat peers – who have objected to the concept of elected police and crime commissioners – the elections will now take place in November 2012.
The party had said that simultaneous elections would cloud issues in both polls.
Mark Burns-Williamson, deputy chair of the Association of Police Authorities, said the Electoral Commission estimated that election costs would double as a result of the postponement
‘Where will this madness end when police budgets are already facing cuts of around 20% over coming years?’ he asked.
The APA said it would seek ‘urgent confirmation’ that the extra costs of elections would not come from police funds, which it said were already under severe pressure.
John Turner, chief executive of the Association of Electoral Administrators, told Public Finance: ‘Holding separate elections will clearly cost more, but it is difficult to say how much more.’
But the APA said the delay ‘at least provides much-needed stability in policing governance in the run-up to, and during, the Olympics next year’.
The association opposes the creation of the commissioners, which it sees as concentrating too much power in the hands of one person and an unacceptable politicisation of policing.
Liberal Democrat peers share these views and combined with Labour and some crossbenchers in May to remove provision for directly elected commissioners from the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill.
The Commons restored them but a fresh rebellion had been threatened this week when the Bill returns to the Lords.
Creating the commissioner posts forms part of the coalition agreement between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.
