Police Commisioner Elections : November 2012

[Filuwaúrdjan]

This will all end in tears.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Oh it'll be fiiiiiine

Maybe initially, but not for long. Bringing the political supervision of the police into the limelight (which is what can't not happen given personal electoral mandates) will have consequences, and they will probably not be the sort that are well liked. It's only a matter of time before there are calls for the system to be 'reformed'.

Fundamentally, the current system (the police authority model) is a bad system, but it's not bad enough to require an urgent overhaul and it hasn't been without its better features.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm also tempted to speculate on which police area elects the craziest Commissioner...

I note with mounting horror that James Anderton is still alive.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Are these partisan elections?

Yes. I seem to recall that the LibDems have said that they won't be running anyone, but then none would get elected anyway.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

former MP Michael Mates

Srsly?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Yeah, North Wales selection was never going to be close.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

former MP Michael Mates

Srsly?

and won selection

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm giving some thought to making a few 'Burrell for Police Commissioner' signs.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Wow. This might be even stupider than electing judges. The only other office I've heard that it's even stupider to elect that some places do is coroner (even more amusingly it's sometimes a partisan position, just like this.)

It is incredibly stupid, but perhaps not quite as incredibly so as it might look to American eyes: the position being elected is to be responsible for oversight of local policing policy, and not the equivalent of a police commissioner in America (or, you know, London).

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Asil Nadir has been found guilty. This has interesting implications for the election in Hampshire...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Does anyone have any idea what the most detailed geographical breakdown we may be able to get of the results will be?

I wouldn't count on anything better than local authority.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I do wonder vaguely about some of the West Country police authorities: a lot of people who are basically conservative but like to cast protest votes against London and who's traditional choice of protest party is now part of the government.

(welcome to the forum, btw)

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It's not really worth their while standing candidates anyway.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

One of Plaid's AMs has endorsed Tal Michael. You do not win a prize for successfully guessing which one...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Why do you admire it, when it will not improve anything and will likely result in problems in some areas, possibly serious ones? Back when oversight of policing was controlled by the Watch Committees of the relevant local authorities, there were sometimes problems of a sort that is not healthy to have. And that was without a personal mandate for a single individual. Police Authorities aren't perfect, but as a least-worst option...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Just voted. Only one other voter in the station (while I was there), who seemed to be confused about the voting system.

There was another voter in your polling station? Remarkable.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Reports of polling stations with no votes cast in some areas.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Yes, I think a lot of independents are likely to benefit from a general feeling that this sort of thing ought not be 'political'.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Can we just abolish these posts now to save bothering with it later?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Perhaps they realised that there was no point in running anyone as the elections were likely to be a big enough joke in their own right?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

He makes a valuable point. I only voted because the polling station is literally on the other side of the street from my flat.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Unfortunately the demographics of the Powys part of Dyfed-Powys are not what they were in the 1960s, so a Labour win (even in a mid-term situation) was never all that likely.

Apparently the winning Independent in North Wales is a Lib Dem member.  I fear some of the other Independents will turn out to be crazy, having managed to get elected on the votes of people who think that voting for an Independent is a good way of expressing the view that the police shouldn't be politicised.

The guy that won in Slurry looks like a good candidate for the nutter award. Anyways, Roddick should resign his party membership, like, yesterday. Given that this is a post that most people don't care about, that should probably be enough to avoid serious problems.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Presumably no one in Berwick voted?