Cautious welcome for Labour’s proposals on policing

24 March 2023

Derbyshire Police Federation has given a cautious welcome to proposals aimed at reducing violence against women and girls and clamping down on antisocial behaviour.

The plans were unveiled by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer who also repeated his pledge to create 13,000 new neighbourhood policing roles.

Sir Keir promised to “reverse the collapse in the proportion of crime solved” and halve levels of violence against women and girls within a decade if he wins power at the next general election.

He also pledged to halve serious violent crime and raise confidence in the police and criminal justice system after Baroness Casey’s report on the Metropolitan Police.

In a speech at Port Vale FC in Stoke-on-Trent, Sir Keir said policing “must change” but warned: “It’s going to be a long, hard road.”

He said the importance of “visible neighbourhood police” was “crystal clear” and repeated a pledge to recruit 13,000 extra officers and “get more police on the beat”.

Labour would also prioritise “fighting the virus that is anti-social behaviour: fly-tipping, off-road biking in rural areas, drugs”, he said.

Derbyshire Police Federation chair Tony Wetton said: “We have already welcomed Labour’s plans to boost neighbourhood policing and would also back any reform which helped us cut crime in our county.

“Obviously we would need to study the details of the proposals because there are often funding and resourcing implications attached but broadly speaking we would be in favour of any measures that enable us to improve the service we deliver to the people of Derbyshire.

“I think it is clear that we need to take action to restore lost public trust and confidence in the police, and on the back of a decade of chronic underfunding and a decimated workforce sadly that won’t happen overnight, but being an efficient, proactive force that members of the public can see and relate to is clearly crucial.”