Common sense cop

THE police should stop and search suspects smelling of cannabis. Being ‘woke’ must not be a priority. Police stations should not be closed. Chief constables should do better. More officers should be out on the streets.

There was a time when it would have been entirely uncontroversial for a top policemen to hold such opinions. The fact they now sound contentious – radical even – emphasises how badly the police have lost touch with the priorities of the public.

so we applaud new Chief inspector of Constabulary Andy Cooke for reaffirming these fundamental principles of policing. The real tragedy is that senior officers need to be reminded of them.