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| Police commissioner Adam Simmonds: a young man in a hurry | Police commissioner Adam Simmonds: a young man in a hurry |
| (21 days later) | |
| The youngest police and crime commissioner in England is in a hurry. He's got three-and-a-half years to eradicate drugs, cut violent crime by 40% and make Northamptonshire the safest place in England. | The youngest police and crime commissioner in England is in a hurry. He's got three-and-a-half years to eradicate drugs, cut violent crime by 40% and make Northamptonshire the safest place in England. |
| It is perhaps this haste that has got Adam Simmonds into trouble so quickly. He was accused of "empire building" when he said he wanted to recruit 10 staff, in addition to the seven he inherited from the existing police authority. | It is perhaps this haste that has got Adam Simmonds into trouble so quickly. He was accused of "empire building" when he said he wanted to recruit 10 staff, in addition to the seven he inherited from the existing police authority. |
| "Maybe my mistake was to hit the ground running and not waste any time, but I have made my bed now," said Simmonds, speaking from his temporary office in an annexe of Northamptonshire police headquarters. | "Maybe my mistake was to hit the ground running and not waste any time, but I have made my bed now," said Simmonds, speaking from his temporary office in an annexe of Northamptonshire police headquarters. |
| Simmonds,35, is excited about the new position introduced by the current government and his role in it. "The role is what you make it. I am the George Washington of the system. The excitement for me as a 35-year old is to have all this power. I don't have to follow in some one's footsteps," he said. | Simmonds,35, is excited about the new position introduced by the current government and his role in it. "The role is what you make it. I am the George Washington of the system. The excitement for me as a 35-year old is to have all this power. I don't have to follow in some one's footsteps," he said. |
| He points to the statute book and the section, "incidental powers" and quotes, "a police and crime commissioner can do anything that is calculated to facilitate the exercise of his functions of commissioner". | He points to the statute book and the section, "incidental powers" and quotes, "a police and crime commissioner can do anything that is calculated to facilitate the exercise of his functions of commissioner". |
| Voters did not appreciate the possible omnipotence of the role. Only 20% of the Northamptonshire electorate voted and Simmonds, a married father of one and committed Christian, representing the Conservatives, narrowly beat the Labour candidate. The new police and crime commissioner has spent almost all his working life as a local government officer. His first task is to allocate the force's £120.55m budget but he is already feeling the pressure of the role. | Voters did not appreciate the possible omnipotence of the role. Only 20% of the Northamptonshire electorate voted and Simmonds, a married father of one and committed Christian, representing the Conservatives, narrowly beat the Labour candidate. The new police and crime commissioner has spent almost all his working life as a local government officer. His first task is to allocate the force's £120.55m budget but he is already feeling the pressure of the role. |
| "The job gets bigger every day. It grows like this; I'm on my way to a regional briefing on cybercrime and counter-terrorism and I get a phone call from a local farmer who has had two of his sheep killed. The police tell him they can't come until Wednesday. He wants to know what am I going to do about it," he said. | "The job gets bigger every day. It grows like this; I'm on my way to a regional briefing on cybercrime and counter-terrorism and I get a phone call from a local farmer who has had two of his sheep killed. The police tell him they can't come until Wednesday. He wants to know what am I going to do about it," he said. |
| There are also divergent demands on the already stretched budget. Simmonds wants to set up an Office for the Eradication of Drugs including a new drugs squad, and a police reserve force. He also wants to reduce violent crime by 40%, compared to the police's target of 3.5%. | There are also divergent demands on the already stretched budget. Simmonds wants to set up an Office for the Eradication of Drugs including a new drugs squad, and a police reserve force. He also wants to reduce violent crime by 40%, compared to the police's target of 3.5%. |
| "Violent crime went up by 5.5% last year. It is also interesting that drug trafficking has gone up at the same rate. Northamptonshire has crime levels of inner cities not rural areas," he said. | "Violent crime went up by 5.5% last year. It is also interesting that drug trafficking has gone up at the same rate. Northamptonshire has crime levels of inner cities not rural areas," he said. |
| He believes the figure of 40% is attainable because unlike the police he hopes to harness all the elements of the system to achieve it. | He believes the figure of 40% is attainable because unlike the police he hopes to harness all the elements of the system to achieve it. |
| "I am looking at the whole system, the probation service, the health service. The police can't make those arrests on their own. This is where I move from just dealing with the police to be an accountable figurehead for the whole criminal justice system," he said. | "I am looking at the whole system, the probation service, the health service. The police can't make those arrests on their own. This is where I move from just dealing with the police to be an accountable figurehead for the whole criminal justice system," he said. |
| Northamptonshire has much the same problems of alcohol-fuelled violence and domestic violence as the rest of the UK but Simmonds is sure a solution will emerge once he gets started. | Northamptonshire has much the same problems of alcohol-fuelled violence and domestic violence as the rest of the UK but Simmonds is sure a solution will emerge once he gets started. |
| He is slightly more concrete on the drugs issue. He recalls meeting a drug addict while doing charity work. "There was a lady there, now dead, Helen, she was 22, addicted to heroin from a very early age. When I asked her what do you want from us she would just say, 'get me off this stuff'," he said. "I'm here for three-and-a-half years and I want to set something in motion. It's a combination of enforcement and diverting people to where they can get help." | He is slightly more concrete on the drugs issue. He recalls meeting a drug addict while doing charity work. "There was a lady there, now dead, Helen, she was 22, addicted to heroin from a very early age. When I asked her what do you want from us she would just say, 'get me off this stuff'," he said. "I'm here for three-and-a-half years and I want to set something in motion. It's a combination of enforcement and diverting people to where they can get help." |
| The Office for the Eradication of Drugs will be responsible for both strategies. It will incorporate a new drugs squad which will target middle-level dealers who are mostly ignored by the East Midlands Drug Squad and manage the care of addicts and drug education. | The Office for the Eradication of Drugs will be responsible for both strategies. It will incorporate a new drugs squad which will target middle-level dealers who are mostly ignored by the East Midlands Drug Squad and manage the care of addicts and drug education. |
| Simmonds takes a fundamentalist attitude towards drug laws, unlike many in Westminster. "The whole point of having the word eradication is I think we need to be more aggressive in our communities about what's acceptable. To get the community to start realising this behaviour is not what we want. The language is a bit Reaganesque but it does what it says on the tin. I want to get rid of the problem rather than just manage it," he said. | Simmonds takes a fundamentalist attitude towards drug laws, unlike many in Westminster. "The whole point of having the word eradication is I think we need to be more aggressive in our communities about what's acceptable. To get the community to start realising this behaviour is not what we want. The language is a bit Reaganesque but it does what it says on the tin. I want to get rid of the problem rather than just manage it," he said. |
| Simmonds has been commissioner for just over a month but he has great hopes. "Look at what Rudolph Giuliani did to New York," he said. "Who would have predicted he could do that?" | Simmonds has been commissioner for just over a month but he has great hopes. "Look at what Rudolph Giuliani did to New York," he said. "Who would have predicted he could do that?" |
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