West Midlands Mayor Andy Street (Image: WMCA)

Next West Midlands Mayor to take on Police & Crime Commissioner powers

Home Secretary has granted Andy Street a request to take on Police & Crime Commissioner powers

by · Birmingham Live

The next West Midlands Metro Mayor will take on Police and Crime Commissioner powers. In a startling announcement this evening, Conservative Andy Street said his request for additional responsibilities had been granted by the Home Secretary James Cleverley.

Street said crime had rocketed and the region could not longer go on like this. West Midlands Police was placed in special measures last month.

Mr Street tweeted: "My request for the Mayor to take on Police & Crime Commissioner powers from May has been agreed by the Home Secretary tonight. Crime has doubled in 8 years and our force is now in special measures.

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"We cannot go on like this. I’ll set out my plan of action in due course."

Mayors in Manchester, London and West Yorkshire are already responsible for the governance and budgets of their police forces. The region’s Labour PCC, Simon Foster, "deeply disagreed" and described the move as "cynical and divisive power grab”.

Mr Foster, said: “I deeply disagree with the Mayor’s hostile takeover, because firstly, he is abolishing people’s right to vote, so that he can appoint one of his friends to the role instead; secondly, preventing, tackling and reducing crime will not be his top priority, and thirdly, this is a cynical and divisive power grab, that is in no-one’s interests save that of the Mayor.

"The Mayor has made this decision, because his party have stood for election to the role of Police and Crime Commissioner four times and been defeated every time. That is because his party is not trusted by the people of the West Midlands, to prevent, tackle and reduce crime.

“There is no local democratic support for this cynical and divisive power grab. The Mayor is attempting to achieve through the backdoor, what his Party have been incapable of achieving through the ballot box."