We need more ‘old-fashioned’ policing, not gender debates, insists police federation boss
THE chair of the Derbyshire branch of the Police Federation has backed calls for a return to “good old-fashioned policing” and away from “politically correct” online debates about gender in a bid, he says, to improve public confidence in the service.
Tony Wetton spoke out after the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, said that members of the public wanted to see officers “fighting crime, not debating gender on Twitter”.
Ms Braverman also told a police chiefs’ conference in Westminster she did not want officers to face “politically correct” distractions and they should focus on “common-sense policing”.
In a speech to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) joint annual summit with the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) on Wednesday, November 9, she said: “The way to ensure public confidence in the police is to focus on getting the basics right.
“What I call common-sense policing. The kind of policing the law-abiding majority deserves and expects. No politically correct distractions, just good old-fashioned policing – with a relentless focus on making our streets, homes and transport networks safer.” Mr Wetton said: “I think it is important that policing keeps up with changing times and attitudes, but that should not prevent us from sticking with our core values.
“I think over the years policing has fallen into the trap of trying to be all things to all people, and that has sometimes left us unable to respond to certain events in the way the public would expect us to.
“I am all for common sense policing and I would suggest that the vast majority of our members feel the same.”
Mr Wetton added that cutbacks, ongoing funding issues, and a recruitment and retention crisis has had a massive impact on policing and needed to be addressed by the new Home Secretary.
“To put it bluntly, we need more officers, better resourcing and a wellpaid, fully-motivated workforce if we want to deliver the kind of service the people of Derbyshire expect and deserve,” he said.