‘Full force of the law’ against all election fraud claims says chief

Peterborough’s top cop wants candidates and agents to take a proactive stance

The full force of the law will be felt by anyone committing election fraud in Peterborough, according to the city’s police chief. Superintendent Andy Gipp has promised to stamp out any sign of illegal actions during the General Election, and he is calling on candidates and their agents to watch out for any suspicious activities.

In 2008 the city’s ex-Tory mayor Raja Akhtar, and exLabour mayor Mohammed Choudhary, were jailed for interfering with postal votes in Central Ward during the 2004 city council elections.

Former Labour official Tariq Mahmood, former Labour party candidate Maqbool Hussein, former Conservative councillor Abdul Razaq and former Conservative election candidate Mohammed Khaliq, were also jailed for the same offence.

Supt Gipp told the Peterborough Telegraph he would give his full support to “upholding public safety, integrity and fairness in the voting process.”

He added: “My stance will be firm but fair regarding unethical or criminal behaviour. If there’s a whiff of any offence I will use all powers legally available to deal with it. There will be no tolerance whatsoever for any malpractice.”

Asked if there was any evidence that fraud will be caragents ried out in Peterborough during the election, which is to be held on June 8, Supt Gipp replied: “Absolutely not.”

But he added: “I expect candidates and their election to be proactive in their stance regarding previous issues and report any suspicious behaviour. We will react very positively.”

Peterborough City Council said it is working closely with Cambridgeshire police to reduce the risk of election fraud and “ensure voters have confidence in the electoral system.” Initiatives include:

Stringent checks on

• postal votes

A dedicated police team

• working with the council to investigate allegations of electoral malpractice

A poster and leaflet

• campaign and videos on a council electoral fraud web page

An election fraud hotline

• of 01733 452277 for anyone to report concerns. Superintendent Andy Gipp