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| New police commissioners 'could cost more than £136m' | New police commissioners 'could cost more than £136m' |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The cost of introducing police and crime commissioners could reach more than £136m, government documents show. | The cost of introducing police and crime commissioners could reach more than £136m, government documents show. |
| The elected officials overseeing forces in England and Wales outside London would be paid about £122,000 a year. | |
| The first of the proposed commissioners are expected to be in place by May 2012, with the power to hire and fire chief constables. | The first of the proposed commissioners are expected to be in place by May 2012, with the power to hire and fire chief constables. |
| Police forces in England and Wales are facing cuts of between 14% and 20% under the government's spending review. | Police forces in England and Wales are facing cuts of between 14% and 20% under the government's spending review. |
| Ministers say the planned commissioners, similar to the US system, will improve the local accountability of police forces and their chief constables. | Ministers say the planned commissioners, similar to the US system, will improve the local accountability of police forces and their chief constables. |
| But many chief constables are concerned that elected officials will interfere in day-to-day policing, making it difficult for them to balance local duties with their national responsibilities. | But many chief constables are concerned that elected officials will interfere in day-to-day policing, making it difficult for them to balance local duties with their national responsibilities. |
| Unveiling the proposals, Home Secretary Theresa May said there would be a bold shift of power in policing. | |
| "These new measures will place the public back at the heart of our drive to cut crime, giving them a say in how their local area is policed by electing a Police and Crime Commissioner, and strengthening the powers that police and councils need to tackle crime and disorder at a local level," said Mrs May. | |
| "For too long, the fight against crime has been tangled up in a web of centrally imposed red tape that has driven a wedge between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve. | |
| "I am determined to rebalance that by giving the public and the police and councils the powers they need to deal with the issues that blight too many of our communities." | |
| Mrs May said the commissioners would not cost more than the police authorities they will be replacing - but official estimates show that the elections to be held every four years from May 2012 would probably cost an additional £50m. The salaries and benefits for the 41 commissioners are subject to approval by the government's Senior Salaries Review Body. | |
| At the general election, both coalition parties pledged greater local accountability of the police. The proposed commissioners were a specific Conservative idea. The Metropolitan Police and City of London Police will not be subjected to the reforms. | |
| The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill says that chief constables would retain responsibility for "the direction and control of the police force" but would be held to account by the elected commissioners. | |
| The commissioner's basic duties include publishing a police and crime plan, setting local police and crime objectives and the budget. Commissioners will only be able to hold office for two terms. | |
| The Home Secretary will retain the power to intervene in a local force where a commissioner was "preparing to set a budget that was less than necessary to maintain appropriate policing in the area". She will also have the power to ensure "proper collaboration" on national policing issues. | |
| Speaking ahead of the announcement, shadow policing minister Vernon Coaker said: "A single elected police chief for an area as large as the West Midlands, Greater Manchester or Devon and Cornwall will do little to improve police accountability, but will risk politicising the police and at a huge cost to the public. | |
| "At a time when police funding is being slashed by 20%, people will not understand why the government wants to spend an estimated £10m - the equivalent of 600 full-time officers - on this controversial top-down experiment. The government should think again." | |
| The bill includes new local powers on alcohol licensing and measures to temporarily ban so-called "legal highs" which have not yet been fully assessed by drugs experts. A further reform to crime fighting, to create a new national crime agency including the current Serious Organised Crime Agency, will come in future legislation. |