Crime and Courts Bill [Lords] – in a Public Bill Committee am 12:00 pm ar 29 Ionawr 2013.
David Hanson
Shadow Minister (Home Affairs)
I welcome you back to the Chair, Mr Caton. You missed a fine morning’s entertainment. I recognise that the world’s eyes are now focused on the Electoral Registration and Administration Bill and the boundaries. I have to declare an interest as my seat would be abolished. I am giving Conservative Members an even bigger incentive to vote.
This morning I started to speak to amendment 4, I hope relatively speedily so that we could get on to the amendments tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Darlington. Clause 15 indicates the interpretation of part 1 of the Bill and gives a range of definitions of who means what, where and when in the previous 14 clauses we have dealt with so far. Amendment 4 refers to the part of clause 15 that refers to strategic partners. As I mentioned just before the break, “strategic partners” are currently defined as
“such persons as appear to the Secretary of State to represent the views of local policing bodies;”.
The amendment would add the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, as I feel that body would be a strategic partner. Although I accept that there may not yet formally be an Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, post April I expect there will be because there is a shadow board that met last week. The Opposition certainly wish for participation by the 13 Labour commissioners in a body of that nature.
I will not go to the wall on the matter. I simply seek clarification from the Minister that
“such persons as appear to the Secretary of State to represent the views of local policing bodies;” is not a way to deal with a certain group of people, but not necessarily PCCs, who form a new organisation. Given that PCCs are a central tenet of the Government’s framework for policing, I think that including the name of that body under strategic partners would give it more credence than a simple mention, as at the moment, under the heading “policing body”, which means a PCC elsewhere. Will the Minister clarify what is meant by the definition under paragraph (c)? I am sure it means what I have put in my amendment but I would like confirmation.
Damian Green
Minister of State (Ministry of Justice and Home Office) , The Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice
I, too, welcome you, Mr Caton, in my late appearance at Committee. As the right hon. Gentleman just said, amendment 4 adds the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners to the list of the National Crime Agency’s strategic partners, who will be consulted during the development of the NCA’s strategic priorities and the agency’s annual plan. I am happy to reassure him that PCCs will indeed be important strategic partners for the NCA. The PCCs have an express national role in tackling the kinds of serious and organised crime whose pernicious effects are felt in the communities they have been elected to represent.
As the right hon. Gentleman says, the definition in clause 15 already includes a reference to
“such persons as appear to the Secretary of State to represent the views of local policing bodies”.
If hon. Members look at the definition of local policing bodies in subsection (1), they will see that it includes PCCs, as well as the Mayor of London and the Common Council of the City of London.
As indicated in the debate last Thursday, there is no requirement on the Home Secretary to consult each and every police and crime commissioner on the strategic priorities. She will certainly be required to consult persons representing views of PCCs. As the right hon. Member for Delyn said, I would fully expect the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners to be an appropriate representative body for these purposes at this time. Thus, an express reference to it is unnecessary, in the same way that an express reference to the Association of Chief Police Officers is unnecessary. I hope that my explanation satisfies the right hon. Gentleman and that he agrees to withdraw his amendment.
