Let’s all work to make county a safer place

I WOULD like to thank everyone who voted for me as your Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucestershire.

I feel humbled and privileged to have your support and am now working hard to deliver my election manifesto.

My main pledges were 300 more police officers/pcsos, 150 more special constables, to adopt a zerotolerance approach to all anti-social behaviours, fix the 101 non-emergency police contact line, reduce internet and phone scams and fight rural crime.

These are demanding objectives and my term of office is only three years, so there is need for immediate action by me and my excellent team if we are to achieve the improvements you have voted for – I intend to keep you updated on progress.

It was great to see that the May 6 turnout was high for a local election at 41 per cent, as this was the biggest set of local elections in a generation (in 2016, the last time we had a Police and

Crime Commissioner election, turnout was just 30 per cent, and only 17 per cent in 2012, when the post was created). I received more than 91,000 votes, giving me a majority of more than 31,000 – with clear majorities in each of our six districts. While questions have been raised regarding my political allegiance, I feel this strong crossparty endorsement of my manifesto pledges should make it easier for me to work with all seven of our councils, as I am determined to take a cross-party approach to fighting crime and serve every resident in Gloucestershire, whether you voted for me or not. Only by working together will we be able to turn Gloucestershire into the safest area in the whole country. Please feel free to contact me if you have any concerns over crime in your area – email