Quit whining, Sir Hugh Orde

Head of the Association of Chief Police Officers, Sir Hugh Orde, clearly doesn't like the idea of democratically accountable policing.  He seems to think the rest of us will continue to accept a criminal justice system grown hopelessly unaccountable to the folk it's supposed to serve.

In a truly pathetic interview in the Independent, he argues against the idea of having directly elected police bosses because he seems to think not enough folk will vote.  Surely, that's an argument for not having elected councils, either? 

And he fears that the wrong sort of people might be elected.  Unlike all those superbly effective people currently sitting on Police Authorities, you mean?

And what if an extremist minority won the ballot?  Like those wanting the police to be tougher on criminals?  Panic at the thought....     

Sir Hugh's clincher argument is that he's not been given enough information on the proposals.  "No one has articulated to me or anyone else what the elected commissioner plan actually looks like" he moans.

Well try reading this or this or this or this. (Incidentally, Sir Hugh, when you do, you'll see it's Police Authorities that'll be replaced by elected commissioners - not Chief Constables, who'd have their operational independence enshrined in law).   

And if you still aren't clear Sir Hugh, as one the the architects behind this policy proposal, I'm happy to pop over to explain how this democracy thing works.

Posted on 7 September 2009 by Douglas Carswell

Comments

Douglas,

Think you will find that, if you go around the bloggers, we have all expressed our 'feelings' on this chap - in fact I headed my post 'Orde or Ord(ur)e'!

Posted on 7 September 2009 20:53 by WitteringsfromWitney

I think there should be some enquiry into APCO, a self-perpetuating organisation which seems to have a veto on the promotion of police to Chief Office rank if they consider them unacceptable, as well as defining policies that they should all carry out by the forces. Who actually runs our police?
My new American neighbour doesn't think much of our police or burglar alarms. Why don't you just shoot them? He claims he had shot someone trying to steal his car off the drive back home, and the sheriff came round and apologised for not knowing the little ***** was in town, and simply threw the body in the back of his station wagon and drove off. Maybe not quite what we want, but then the sheriff was up for re-election.

Posted on 7 September 2009 21:28 by Brian E

"And what if an extremist minority won the ballot? Like those wanting the police to be tougher on criminals? Panic at the thought...."

Yes we can't have policemen working as ....policemen. In any event this is a specious argument since the judiciary are still unaccountable. However making the police democratically accountable would be a start.

Posted on 7 September 2009 21:47 by LT

And one of the first quangoes to be abolished should be the ACPO. An entirely useless and dangerous conspiracy.

Posted on 8 September 2009 09:57 by Disputin

The Comment is to be expected from an organisation (funded by the taxpayer) who seek to protect the interest of their members. I live in a rural county and have no faith in the local police authority. They are unable for whatever reason, to hold the local police to account. They are unelected and yet have the power to set the Police Precept which I have to pay. In this County which is a low paid agricultural community, they disregard the means of the local taxpayer and support what the police want. We have a culture of scaremongering about being unsafe in our communities every year when decisions are being reached regarding community charges. Oh yes - the PR machine of the local police force is huge at the expense of PCs. It is outrageous and we taxpayers and members of the community are powerless to act. I am looking forward to the changes proposed.

Posted on 8 September 2009 12:29 by Jane

I need to confess a thought crime: I laughed like a drain at Brian E's comment.

Posted on 8 September 2009 15:20 by Mike Spilligan

Ahh, how wonderfully insulting. "The people can't be allowed to choose - they might choose the wrong people."

As Dan says over on his blog, "that's the thing about democracy: you sometimes lose"

Posted on 8 September 2009 16:23 by Mark M

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