Changes to Police Governance and
Accountability
Significant changes in police
governance and accountability have been introduced with The Police
Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011. The legislation replaces
the Police Authority with an elected Police and Crime Commissioner
(PCC). On the 5 May 2016 Mr Marc Jones was elected as the PCC for
Lincolnshire. The PCC is responsible for deciding the priorities
and budget for the Lincolnshire police force and is accountable to
the public for the performance of their police force.
The Act requires the local
authorities in each police force area to establish and maintain a
Police and Crime Panel. The Act requires that the Panel must be
balanced in terms of geography, politics, and the skills, knowledge
and experience of Panel members. The Panel does not scrutinise the
performance of the force as a whole or the Chief Constable as this
is the responsibility of the PCC.
The Functions of the Police and Crime
Panel
The Police and Crime Panel has
a number of powers and responsibilities, including:
·
Scrutinising
the actions and decisions of the Police and Crime
Commissioner
·
Reviewing the
draft Police and Crime Plan to ensure local priorities have been
considered
·
Scrutinising
and commenting upon the Annual Report of the PCC
·
Reviewing and
reporting on the precept proposed by the PCC. The Panel has the
right to veto the Commissioner’s proposed policing precept
(the money collected from Council Tax for policing)
·
Holding
confirmation hearings for the proposed appointment of a Chief
Constable and senior support staff
Two independent co-opted
members have also been appointed through an open recruitment
process and are listed in the membership below.
Information regarding the Panel
and details of future meetings are available at
www.e-lindsey.gov.uk/lpcp