If a Tory Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) appoints his Tory crony as Deputy PCC (a well-paid position), and then that Deputy stands for the main job, doesn’t that seem like nepotism, giving the Deputy a leg up over other candidates? Doesn’t this sort of system have the whiff of corruptibility in it?

The remit of the PCC is to hold the Chief Constable to account and improve police performance stats. In 2012, the first Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner was elected after the Government decided it should become a political position. Anthony Stansfeld, the Tory candidate, won. He was re-elected in 2016.

Matthew Barber, at the time the Tory Leader of the Vale of White Horse District Council, was appointed Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner in December 2016. Not elected, but appointed by Commissioner Stansfeld. He started out part time, but went full time in 2018 (I think it was 2018), standing down as Leader of Vale of White Horse District Council in order to do so.

Matthew Barber is now seeking the nomination as the Tory candidate for the top job of Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner. The election is in 2020. See why he thinks he is ‘best placed’ to have that job https://www.matthewbarber.co.uk/deliveringforthethamesvalley

Maybe the Deputy should be elected too. Although, I don’t see why this has to be a political job at all. Maybe there’s a committee or board who can interview and hire, and we can take both nepotism and politics out of policing.