Onward Bulletin 01/09/2021
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IN THE NEWS
The summary report of a roundtable, hosted by Onward in partnership with the National Farmers Union, was referenced by FarmersWeekly in a discussion on rural connectivity.
The findings of our recent report, Making a Comeback, were referenced in The Times, commenting on the potential for growth in Britain’s manufacturing sector.
The findings of our report, Paying it Forward, were referenced in the Investors’ Chronicle, referring to the number of ‘zombie companies’ that may potentially go bust post-Covid, as government support is withdrawn.
UPCOMING EVENTS
TOMORROW! We are thrilled to host Chris Stark, Chief Executive of the Climate Change Committee, for a speech and accompanying Q&A on the transition to net zero. Register here.
In two weeks time, we are delighted to be hosting Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Dr Rhian-Mari Thomas OBE, Chief Executive of Green Finance Institute and Hubert Keller, Co-Senior Partner of Lombard Odier Group to discuss Private Capital for Public Good. Register here to join.
This article first appeared in the iNews on 27 August 2021. For the full text, click here.
When politicians interfere with the operational business of local policing, the responsiveness of law enforcement typically declines and lawmakers tend to get their fingers burnt.
The police cannot do their job if public consent is undermined by perceived political interest, and politicians cannot hold the police to account if they are too close to decision-making about priorities, resourcing and recruitment.
There are many cautionary tales but the most tragic came after the last Labour Government introduced local policing targets from 2003 – the unintended and indirect consequence of which was the sexual exploitation of 1,400 children in Rotherham. As the independent Jay review of the Rotherham scandal found: “since there were no operational targets for dealing with child sexual exploitation, it lost out to crimes that were governed by [targets].”
This is clearly not what the then Home Secretary, David Blunkett intended when he originally told South Yorkshire Police to focus on crimes like violent crime and burglary, but it now reminds his successors that it is not their job to run policing.
This need for separation is why, in 2010, a newly installed Conservative government pledged that ministers “will have no role in telling the police how to do their job – that is for the police; or in holding them to account for how well they have done it – that is for the public and their police and crime commissioner.” Politicians make the laws; police officers enforce them.
Eleven years later, another newly installed Conservative government is in danger of forgetting this essential truth. Priti Patel undoubtedly meant well when she opted to establish a National Policing Board to oversee policing from the Home Office; offered to buy a Taser for every officer despite resistance from chief constables; or when she told the Police Federation in June that her job was to be their “political advocate in Westminster”, adding: “There’s no doubt you have my support. That is a guarantee.” But the risk she foreshadows is for greater political involvement in, and proximity to, operational policing.
This risk is becoming more visible. This week, it was revealed that domestic abuse prosecutions halved in the last three years. Last week, a report found an estimated 4,500 people in mental health crisis had been unlawfully held in police custody in 2018. In June, the Independent Panel’s report on private investigator Daniel Morgan’s death accused the Metropolitan Police of “a form of institutional corruption”, not just for presiding over a corrupt investigation in 1987 but by repeatedly misleading attempts over the intervening 34 years to get to the truth.
Policing has become more transparent, responsive and accountable. And crime – the most important indicator – has fallen steadily since its 1995 peak. But this improvement is not self-sustaining. It will fall back if reform stalls.
The politics of “backing the police, no matter what” works until it doesn’t. Sooner or later, ministers will need sufficient distance from operational matters to hold police forces to account.
Policy Bites
The Government will begin the process of distributing £8.6 billion across the UK to support affordable house building, supporting 370,000 jobs. Link.
The Government has announced a consultation on the banning of single-use plastics, such as cutlery and polystyrene cups. Link.
The Government will begin the process of restoring thousands of acres of peatland, to protect biodiversity. Link.
Quick Links
Supporting Mental Health Post-Lockdown: Stephen Fry writes in the Telegraph that we need to support young people’s mental health as we emerge from the pandemic. Link.
Empowering People for Employment: Richard Holden MP writes in ConservativeHome about how we must empower people with skills training and cutting unnecessary bureaucracy. Link.
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