Low crime is good for the economy

The 20,000 police officers promised by Boris Johnson when he was on the path to Downing Street was totemic to his campaign. A key pledge during his own leadership campaign, a point of early action within the Home Office once he came to power, and one of the successes of his premiership. 

This is about more than a return to pre-coalition days. Certainly in my own Force of Thames Valley as in much of the rest of the country we now have more police officers than ever before. It is about ensuring that the fight against crime remains a focus for government. 

This sense of prioritisation is one that is lacking from the Conservative Party leadership debates so far. Much of the debate about the economy has been about tax cuts versus spending, a perfectly reasonable area for discussion, but whichever route the successful candidate takes they will need to prioritise. It is not possible, or even necessarily desirable, when managing a country’s finances to be all things to all men. 

The need for continued investment in policing, not simply protection from any future squeeze, is clear. Both candidates are keen to bolster the economy and a low-crime environment is one of the surest ways of doing so. 

We all know that confidence in policing (not unlike many other public institutions) has taken a severe knock in recent years for some very particular reasons. The surest way to restore the trust that is needed is to deliver the results that the public expect. This will require investment and a continued focus not just from the Home Office but from the new resident of Number 10. 

The long awaited review of the police funding formula is still outstanding but this will only ever determine how the cake is distributed, not the amount of cake available to policing as a whole. 

Along with many of my Police & Crime Commissioner colleagues across the country I am working to ensure the police are proactive in addressing the issues that concern the public the most. Much of the pressure on frontline police officers in recent years has been in areas often not seen by many people. The dark world of domestic abuse and child sexual exploitation goes largely unseen by many and it is quite right that the police are now much more effective in these areas that they were even a decade ago. 

Nevertheless if we are to restore public confidence the police need to tackle the fear of crime that exists for too many people. Proactive visible policing and seeking to prevent crime, not simply respond to reports. This needs investment and must go hand in hand with wider criminal justice reform. As PCC I am concerned to see the whole system working in the public interest. It is easy for governments to legislate for longer sentences but much harder to deliver higher charge rates or to make our prisons and probation system work effectively to prevent reoffending. 

Naturally every public service will argue that they are a special case, but at a time when many of us do want to see tax cuts, decisions will need to be made and priorities set. Amongst the noise there is a good story to tell about recent investment and focus on policing. As the final two leadership candidates seek to persuade Conservative Party members who is most suited to the highest office in the land, they will need to set out not just a desire to cut crime, but a plan to support the police in doing so.