THREAT  TO  POLICE  INTEGRITY

“Tony Blair and Charles Clarke are playing with fire when they undermine the integrity and independence of our Police Force”, said a former Member of the Devon and Cornwall Police Authority this evening (Thursday).

Lord Tyler, the recently retired MP for North Cornwall, urged the Authority to “robustly defend those essential qualities in our Force.”

“Not content with dragging the Chief Constables into the party political wrangle over long-term detention without charge, the Government is now threatening to centralise and amalgamate Forces to such an extent that they will be the creatures of the Home Office and lose all pretence of local accountability.   Any further forced union with other Forces for Cornwall and Devon would mean loss of responsibility.  It would be especially damaging to public confidence.”

“If Ministers had stuck to their promise that a Parliamentary Joint Committee of Peers and MPs would be allowed to examine the evidence – and question the Police and Security Services – the 90-day detention preference might have been accepted.   Waving a press release in the Commons was not an adequate substitute.”

“Hard on the heals of last night’s rejection of Mr Blair’s strong-armed tactics, today’s proposals look like sour grapes.   The control freaks of Whitehall are attempting another nationalisation of the most vital public service.”