PCC election
On 2nd May 2024 the residents of Chichester will have a chance to elect a new Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex. The current Police and Crime Commissioner,
Katy Bourne, has been a Commissioner for over ten years and is currently standing again as a Conservative Candidate. Has she done well and does she deserve to be re elected?
In the first few years Ms Bourne did do well.
She secured extra funding for the Police and helped improve Police and court procedures. Crime figures fell and the result was that in 2019 Ms Bourne was awarded a OBE for public and political service.
However in recent years things have not gone so well. Data released by the Home Office shows the number of crimes recorded by Sussex Police rose by eight per cent from March 2022 to March 2023. These figures show a steeper rise than the national average and include several categories rising by over 30 per cent.
Has public confidence in Sussex police increased?
Again , unfortunately not. In April 2023 the
Police’s own Inspector (His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services) said that while Sussex Police was broadly satisfactory it urgently needs to improve how it responds to the public and records crime.
According to crime rate.co.uk (a data analyst organisation used by the government and other official bodies) Chichester is the third most dangerous medium-sized town in
West Sussex, and is the 27th most dangerous overall out of West Sussex's 161 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Chichester in 2023 was 96 crimes per 1,000 people.
Is it time to vote in May 2024 for another candidate to be the West Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex?
Joseph O’sullivan
Mill Gardens, East Wittering