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New call to take control of the police

Date

Date
2807ANN GRIFFITH10

A fresh call has been made for policing to be devolved to Wales.

Ann Griffith, the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales, has added her voice to the growing demand for taking control of the police from the Westminster government.

She was speaking at the All Wales Visioning Conference for Policing which was held in Cardiff.

Ms Griffith acknowledged the UK government was opposed to the idea but insisted there was now an overwhelming case to devolve the police service.

She said: "You will be aware that as a collective group of Commissioners we have unanimously declared our support for the devolution of policing to Wales.

The Westminster Government has steadfastly said it will not devolve policing to Wales, however, the case for it to be done is strong.

Scotland and Northern Ireland, as we know, have their own police forces which have evolved in their own very distinct ways. There are also the models in London and Greater Manchester.

Now is the right time for policing to be devolved to Wales.

The case can be made and the benefits are clear as so many services have already been devolved.

They include agriculture, education, environment, health and social welfare, housing, local government, fire and rescue, health and social welfare stamp duty, culture and sport.

This is not a comprehensive list by any means but gives an idea of the scale of the devolved powers.

Community safety, local government, health and transport are all interconnected with policing.

There is already a growing body of law and a wider plan for protection emanating out of Cardiff Bay – the vital bit that is missing is policing.

What will it mean for the people of Wales to have policing devolved? Most people will not care so long as they get a good value for money service.

But we know the confusions and problems that frequently present due to legislation and policy arising from both Welsh Government and Westminster."

According to Ms Griffith, one of those areas was the apprenticeship levy.

The four Welsh forces were, she said, paying a total of £2 million and she feared  they'll get nothing back in return.

The UK Government had agreed a funding deal for the forthcoming levy for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland under which each of the devolved governments will receive a share of the money paid in based on their population.

The Welsh Government was due to get back a total of almost £400 million over the next three years.

But because the Welsh Government was not responsible for policing there was a big question mark over whether any of the money paid in by Welsh police forces, including North Wales, could be spent on officer training.

Ms Griffith added: "As the austerity programme bites both administrations remind us of the implications of devolved and non - devolved services – and the police service falls between the cracks.

What we need is pragmatic devolution in order to improve on what we are doing because after all the majority of our partner agencies are devolved and especially the emergency services.

We are delighted that the First Minister has welcomed our commitment to devolution and it is our hope that we will work together to achieve this shared vision.

This is an important task and one which should not be underestimated in terms of its complexity and size.

We must take time to understand the full implications of what devolution actually means and what it will take to implement it effectively. It must not be rushed.

We must make the most of the opportunity to identify and understand the full implications of what is involved so that we are well prepared for devolution when it comes."