Showing posts with label bi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bi. Show all posts

Friday, August 15, 2008

Remote Controlled Police.

Policing to targets leads to the police making arrests that boost their statistics rather than those which would cut crime:

A senior police officer has criticised some Home Office targets, saying they have had a damaging impact on policing in England and Wales.

Chief Constable of Staffordshire Chris Sims said they encouraged a "policing to targets" culture, rather than one focusing on the public's needs.

It's a fair point, but it is inevitable that we rely on targets if the police forces are all run by the Home Office. When the people in charge of the police are so remote from what's going on they have to use a simplistic set of statistics to determine what is going on. So if the police are to actually focus on the important stuff then control should be transferred to a locally accountable body.