Barber re-elected for a second term
Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Matthew Barber will serve another four years in the area after being re-elected.
Voters in the Thames Valley, including the Royal Borough, Slough, Buckinghamshire, West Berkshire, and Wokingham took to the polls on Thursday, May 2 to vote in the Police and Crime Commissioner elections.
Candidates from the three main parties contested the role, with the incumbent Conservative PCC Matthew Barber going up against Labour candidate Tim Starkey and Liberal Democrat Tim Bearder.
Two Independent candidates, Russell Douglas Fowler and Ben Holden-Crowther also battled it out for the role.
Votes were counted by councils across the Thames Valley on Saturday, and the overall result saw Conservative Matthew Barber re-elected with 144,092 votes.
Following the declaration of the results, Mr Barber said: “I am delighted to have been reelected as the Police and Crime Commissioner for the Thames Valley.
“Over the past three years, I have worked with the brilliant officers and staff at Thames Valley Police to deliver tangible outcomes our communities can be proud of - a record number of police officers with the number in neighbourhood roles doubled.”
He added that burglary rates are ‘below pre-pandemic levels’ and knife crime is also down 13 per cent, ‘thanks, in part, to Operation Deter and a zero-tolerance approach to knife possession’. A dedicated Rural Crime Taskforce has also been created and a strategy to combat retail crime has been launched, Mr Barber explained.
“But I know there is more to do. I campaigned on a platform of continuing to expand neighbourhood policing, protecting communities, people and property. I look forward to taking this plan forward and making Thames Valley a safer place for us all,” he added.
In the Royal Borough, Mr Barber came out on top with 6,592 votes, closely followed by the Liberal Democrat’s Tim Bearder who received 4,516.
Labour’s Tim Starkey received 4,204 and was followed by Independents Ben HoldenCrowther and Russell Douglas Fowler with 2,011 and 1,505 votes respectively.
The voter turnout in the Royal Borough was 17.14 per cent, the council announced.
In Slough, Labour’s Mr Starkey took the top spot with 7,067, followed by Mr Barber who received 4,747 votes.
Independent Mr HoldenCrowther received 1,932 votes, Lib Democrat’s Mr Bearder received 1,456 votes and Russell Douglas Fowler got 1,134 votes.
Over in Buckinghamshire, Mr Barber won with 28,706 votes, closely followed by Mr Starkey who received 21,403 votes.
Lib Democrat Mr Bearder received 12,372 votes, followed by Independents Mr HoldenCrowther who got 7,876 votes and Russell Douglas Fowler who received 5,921 votes.
Mr Barber won in both West Berkshire and Wokingham with 9,362 and 19,111 votes respectively.
The overall results saw Labour’s Mr Starkey come in second with 141, 749 votes, followed by Liberal Democrat Mr Bearder with 84, 341, and Independents Mr Holden-Crowther with 46,853 and Russell Douglas Fowler with 31, 460.
The PCC is an elected leader of a regional police force and is responsible for its policing strategy.
This includes the budget, and appointing the chief constable, who is the force’s top police officer.