Final Word....

As a final appeal to the people of South Yorkshire I would like to ask that you consider the following. 

Out of all the candidates I am the only one who has always been so passionate about policing and criminal justice that I made it my life's work. 

I have 30 years of policing experience, and a further 7 in other parts of the criminal justice system, but beyond that I am committed and always have been to ensuring public protection and safety. This has been the same throughout my working career.

I do want to see the police held in high esteem again by the public and to do that I am more than ready to root out ineffective working practice. This is something I have done throughout my career from within and also outside the police force in my roles where I was seconded to regional and national government.

Indeed, I would go so far as to say that I am the only one of the candidates who would know effectively where to look to challenge the force if it was needed.

Above all, I want to work for and with the people of South Yorkshire. I will listen. I will act. I will remain impartial and I will work as hard to reduce crime here and in this role as I did for every day I spent as one of those "bobbies" the other candidates are so keen on.

Kind regards,

Nigel Bonson.

Why You Should Vote For Me

I was recently asked the following questions by The Star newspaper in South Yorkshire. Here are my answers.

Why Do you believe you are suitable for the role of Police and Crime Commissioner?

I have the necessary skills, experience and vision. Effective policing and reducing crime is my passion

I’ve been in public service for 38 years, 30 as a police officer and worked in central, regional and local government. I specialised in partnership work, crime reduction and domestic violence. I was then appointed by the Labour Government as an adviser, particularly working in under-performing areas. I’ve dealt with, studied and advised upon guns, gangs and drugs and led overseas study tours.

I taught police officers, nationally, about sharing of information - placing child protection above data protection and red tape.

As a member of the Parole Board I make decisions about the management of offenders on a daily basis– always putting public protection first.

I have a Masters degree in police studies.

What makes you different from the other candidates? (Why should residents vote for you rather than the others?)

I’m the only candidate that has the necessary understanding and experience. I’ve been frustrated to hear promises from others, which sound attractive but aren’t deliverable and range from foolish to dangerous. For instance, whilst we all aspire to increasing uniform patrols – I would not propose to do so without first consulting the public and being clear about where the officers where to be taken from! We cannot leave specialist areas vulnerable. Another concern is this. Whose ideas are these? Have candidates fully consulted or are they, before having been elected, pursuing their own ill-considered whims?

Your PCC must understand the police, not just be another police officer. I offer something extra and would influence all those with a role to play in our safety and justice.

I am also trustworthy. There is nothing in my past record or career history which would cause anyone to question my integrity or competence.

What crimes cause you most concern personally and why, and what would you do to tackle these?

The crimes that concern me are not important. What is important is what concerns the public. Indeed my role as PCC is to establish what the public is most concerned about influence police priorities, if that is appropriate, and then hold the police to account.

What I would not be doing, as some are promising, is simplistically basing this upon the volume of crimes reported. That does no favours to the victims of domestic violence, child abuse or many other serious types of offending that have long term and significant effects upon both victims and those around them.

How they are tackled is an operational matter and the preserve of the Chief Constable. However, my role would be to secure adequate resources and ensure all relevant partners were pulling together.

Which crimes do you believe to be the biggest issues for the force and why? And how will you tackle them?

It’s obvious that violent crime, burglaries and anti-social behaviour are affecting many and demanding response.

                        

Drug and gang activity threatens significant problems in the future. My experience of this and the interventions that work will give you a PCC that resources our defences properly.

Child abuse will always be a priority and never neglected for lack of resources. The Rotherham grooming scandal affects not only those victims that were let down then, but any victims of today who have lost the trust to come forward. This is not just a police issue; the police often only get involved once suspicions have been reported by others. It’s crucial that the right people are in the right places and that front line workers, of all agencies, are educated to spot the signs and take positive action.  If voters don’t know of the recent issue in Rotherham then they should investigate before voting.

The police budget - money needs to be saved...how will you do this without affecting the capability of the force?

Money doesn’t need to be saved –it needs to be spent in a way that achieves absolute maximum efficiency. About 90% of the budget is of course used to pay for police and support staff. Having taken the cost of vehicles etcetera from the remainder we are not talking about huge amounts and every drop of crime reduction and public reassurance must be squeezed from it. This means doing what works – not what sounds attractive. As PCC I would also work with others to find ways of their resources being bent moulded to contribute.

It is all the more vital that we focus upon what matters – albeit sometimes at the cost of what matters less! Tough decisions are needed and I will make them. Indeed the toughest are not about what the police should do, they are about what they should NOT do.

Residents regularly say they want more bobbies on the beat - can you make a commitment now to taking on extra police officers? If you pledge to take on extra officers, how will you fund them?

The recruiting of additional police officers is not an option – indeed saving those that we have is the greater challenge. Making crazy promises about that to win votes is, frankly, immoral. Sadly, I can make no such commitment whilst under the current financial restraints. This makes it vital that officers are used in the way you would wish and the way criminals would despise. When there is an opportunity to fight for further investment, be certain that, as an ex-police officer, I will of course be doing so! If you choose me as your PCC you will have a credible voice at the table, arguing your case.

The remit of the PCC’s is police and crime. My experience is working with partners, pulling activities and resources together to tackle crime and its causes. The more  partners do, the more the police can get back to prevention and detection.

How can you guarantee that you will not let politics interfere with the running of the county's police force?

I want to keep dabbling politicians well away from our police. Any PCC must sign an oath of impartiality. I signed mine two weeks ago. Unlike others, I have also run a non party-political campaign – I can’t have it both ways.

Having acted without bias within criminal justice, day in day out, for 38 years, it is what comes naturally to me. My most effective work has been in high crime areas around the country; typically Labour heartland areas. I’ve earned a reputation as one who cares and one who actually makes a difference.

Voters have a role to play. You’re appointing someone to a position that will affect lives. If it was any other job – say a head teacher, or a neurosurgeon, would you ask candidates their politics? No. You’d look at their CVs and ask tough questions to be sure they had the right skills, experience, and vision.

 Will you be closing any more stations?

This borders on being an operational decision of the Chief Constable. However, my job would be to test public opinion, establish the pros and cons of any such suggestion and, once more, hold the police to account in delivering the service that the public wants.

Only with the proper information and communication can the police and the public make sensible decisions. In this example, the public needs to know what, if anything, it would gain; the police need to know whether the public wants that. I would give the people that voice.

The force's reputation has taken a battering in recent weeks ( Hillsborough and Orgreave for example)...how will you improve its reputation and restore faith in police officers.

The Rotherham grooming scandal should be added to this list.

Public satisfaction rates are encouragingly high despite recent revelations. Good quality day to day service of the type the public wants will go a long way too.

The Independent Police Complaints Inquiry into Hillsborough is underway and must be completed with those responsible for any wrongdoing brought to justice.

I wasn’t at Orgreave but I did grow up in a mining community in Atherton and I was proudly policing there at the time and understand the emotive nature of that conflict. If an inquiry into Orgreave is demanded by the public I will fight for funds to do so.

I genuinely want people to proudly refer to SYP as ‘our police’.  I’ve always challenged poor practice from within and outside the police. I am possibly the only candidate who would know where to look to hold them to any account.

Police overtime runs to around £8 million a year - what is your view on this and how would you reduce this bill?

This is an ever-recurring bone of contention and I would be amazed if South Yorkshire Police are not doing what other forces are doing to keep it to an absolute minimum.  As with all areas of expenditure however, I would want to be absolutely satisfied that this is the case.

The reality of the situation is that police officers can make arrests or become engaged in incidents near the end of their shifts, urgent operations are needed that demand extra officers and of course public holidays still need police officers. There are many ways now used to reduce the need for overtime – effective forward planning, good systems of handing jobs over to other officers etc. Some overtime will however always necessary in the interests of the efficiency we seek.

SYP is set to lose its own dedicated helicopter - how detrimental do you feel this will be the force? Will you fight this?

I have worked within police aviation and I am a great advocate of police air support. Yes it’s expensive but it catches criminals – it puts the police ahead of the game. Criminals don’t like it so I do! Of course there are many other uses and it is now something that we cannot and should not do without.  I congratulate the current Police Authority for the way it protected air support cover for South Yorkshire albeit I do understand the sound rationale for a better pooling of resources with other forces.

How will you engage the public as part of your role and actually find out what matters to the man on the street?

We need a whole range of engagement methods and I was delighted to see some that the existing Police Authority staff are already enthusiastically deploying. Public meetings, surgeries and questionnaires all have their place but in my experience fail to make meaningful contact with many groups of people and individuals; particular those that are difficult to reach.

I want to meet people (both personally and by other means) where they are. To get their view when they’re at the hairdressers, the pub, the school gates, the cinema or wherever it is they go about their daily business.

Have you ever been a victim of crime? If so, what were the circumstances?

To be honest I struggle to find any adult that has not, albeit the experiences of some may have been less serious. I have been subjected to my home being burgled, theft of and from my car and I have been assaulted.

More importantly is my understanding of what the effects of crime can have upon victims. My parole work brings me into contact with the perpetrators of the most serious crimes and I see the results upon victims first hand. If victims do not feel supported and do not feel that justice has been done then one might ask ‘what is the point?’

I am committed to the support of victims but also the support of witnesses; both before court, at court and beyond court.

Have you ever been arrested, cautioned or convicted? If so, what were the circumstances.

I firmly believe in being honest and facing your past mistakes. I’m disappointed to confess that I have been caught by a speed camera driving in excess of 30 mph However my licence is now clean. Otherwise my record is absolutely and completely unblemished and as a current member of the Parole Board I am subjected to thorough and extremely high levels of positive vetting.

I would NOT support the privatisation of our Police Force.

Privatisation of policing.

I can absolutely confirm that I do not support the privatising of the police. Policing is a public service and must remain so. Police officers must be accountable to the public and must police by consent. I have been a police officer for 30 years and will defend that to the hilt.  

The last government introduced legislation that allowed the roles of transport and custody of prisoners to be transferred to private contractors. I am acutely aware of the way in which these things can creep and I would not let that happen in South Yorkshire.

I have been impressed to find that South Yorkshire Police have already set up some excellent collaboration arrangements with adjoining forces, involving some sharing of specialist resources and some joint procurement arrangements that provide savings. This I support and am keen, if elected, to explore further opportunities.

Indeed, as I said at a Business Forum only last Friday, when it comes to increasing purchasing power, if there are savings to be made then we must not be restricted to bargaining with adjacent forces.

In relation to work behind the scenes – things like administration, IT and maintenance – if savings can be made by collaborating with other police forces, other emergency services, local authorities, or in appropriate cases private companies, they must be considered. Budgets are exceedingly tight and must not be wasted. The more that can be used to provide the policing that the people want, the better.

To suggest that you should not vote for me because I believe in privatising the police force is just ridiculous.

Nigel Bonson

Watch, judge, vote.

It seems that many people are still undecided about how to vote. This hour long debate might help. You may need to copy and post into your browser.

http://connect.southyorks.public-i.tv/site/player/pl_v7.php?a=90562&t=0&m=wms&l=en_GB

Please read the posts below if you wish to learn more about my views and experience.

My promise to the people of South Yorkshire.

If elected all candidates will have to sign an oath of impartiality.

In the absence of that, currently, we can only take their word for it.

I will go further than this “wait and see” approach.

I, Nigel Bonson, of Sheffield, South Yorkshire,  sincerely promise that I will act at all times with integrity and impartiality. I will act and take decisions, free of the influence or interference of Government, any political party, the trade unions or any specific individual or body.

I am able to do this. I am not the puppet of large donors. I have maintained my integrity and impartiality whilst working within the police and the wider criminal justice system for the last 38 years and that will not change.

Here is the official oath from the Home Office website and I adhere to that too…

Police and crime commissioner oath

I, Nigel Bonson of South Yorkshire do solemnly and sincerely promise that I will serve all the people of South Yorkshire Force Area in the office of police and crime commissioner without fear or favour.

I will act with integrity and diligence in my role and, to the best of my ability, will execute the duties of my office to ensure that the police are able to cut crime and protect the public.

I will give a voice to the public, especially victims of crime and work with other services to ensure the safety of the community and effective criminal justice.

I will take all steps within my power to ensure transparency of my decisions, so that I may be properly held to account by the public.

I will not seek to influence or prevent any lawful and reasonable investigation or arrest, nor encourage any police action save that which is lawful and justified within the bounds of this office.

Signed,

Nigel Bonson.

Wild promises......

I would urge voters to be cautious when considering the many promises being made by candidates who do not understand policing. Let me give you some examples:

Robert Teal now says he wants to increase ‘bobbies on the beat’ to 90% of the police staff rather than the current target of 70%. Putting to one side the fact that this may be crossing the boundary into the Chief Constable’s operational control; what he does NOT say is where he proposes to make cuts in order to achieve this. At a time when some forces are increasing resources to deal with child grooming, for instance, it would appear that Mr Teal intends to significantly reduce specialist departments.

Shaun Wright says he would ensure all complainants of anti-social behaviour get a response within twenty four hours. What’s the point of visiting someone at 4pm who has phoned to report an isolated incident of drunken behaviour outside their house at 2am? What a total waste of an officer’s valuable time. Likewise, it would be pointless people phoning the police about a burglary the day after bonfire night or Halloween – hard-pressed officers will all be spending the day meeting Mr Wright’s meaningless and rigid target!

Jonathan Arnott says he’ll have police stations open 24 hours a day. Well, as a resident I can assure voters that I would not wish to see valuable police or civilian staff sitting in an empty police station at four in the morning. If I need the police at that time I want them to come to me.

Another concern is this. Whose ideas are these? Have candidates already fully consulted or are they, even now, before having been elected, pursuing their own ill-thought-through whims? Of course it could just be shallow and meaningless rhetoric to win votes.

When you hear any of these promises, I would just ask that you please carefully think about them.

Policing is a serious and complex business. You are appointing someone who will affect lives. I am standing as your PCC because I want to play my role in making South Yorkshire safer. I have an abundance of knowledge and experience of what works and can therefore, with credibility, pursue the type of policing the public wants. I will not be entering any competition of attractive (and potentially dangerous) ideas.

I am delighted to have been selected to stand for South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner on behalf of the Conservative Party.

I must firstly say, that despite the Party endorsement, I very firmly believe that this is NOT a party political role. I will be signing an oath of impartiality which guarantees that I will not be influenced by Government, the Opposition parties or the unions. We must not play politics with public safety. That is immoral. That's not British policing. This is a unique and special opportunity to improve our police force on behalf of the people it serves; not a stick for political parties to beat each other with and must never be used to interfere with the Chief Constable's operational  control. I will of course fight for budgets, as strongly as any candidate is vowing to do, so that the police force can be of maximum effect in reducing crime. In return I will expect the police force to deliver on that.

I've spent my entire working life within the criminal justice system. I'm currently an independent member of the Parole Board ensuring public safety is a priority when making decisions regarding a prisoner's release. I was a police officer with Greater Manchester Police for 30 years attaining the rank of Chief Inspector and latterly responsible for Criminal Justice Partnerships in Salford.

I had a successful career specialising in community policing, partnership working, crime reduction and domestic violence. I moved to become an Associate Trainer with the National Police Improvement Agency. I worked as a Neighbourhood renewal advisor supporting local partnerships in the delivery of regeneration and crime reduction working under contract to the then Labour government.

I completed secondments to both regional and national governments including Home Office Safer Cities Co-ordinator, managing the Regional Crime Reduction Team at a regional government office, and working on generating crime and disorder reduction activity across many regional programmes. I have regularly briefed ministers on these activities and drafted speeches on their behalf.

I have extensive experience of gun and gang culture, which we have seen, all too tragically in recent weeks, represents a continued threat to our communities. I have experience of working in deprived areas with correspondingly high crime levels including Labour heartland estates. I have international policing experience, including tough areas like New York and Philadelphia where I worked to share best practice between U.K police forces and their American counterparts. On behalf of the British Government I visited Chicago to work with the Mayor and others to explore policing and housing policies.

I have the courage to take difficult decisions which will be necessary in the role of Police and Crime Commissioner. Unlike my opponents however, I have real experience of the role of a police officer and this gives me the means and the credibility to create effective working relationships with officers, officials and partners. Critically, I have the necessary insight to tackle inefficient working practices on the behalf of South Yorkshire people.

Contemporary negative press surrounding the police does highlight a need for us to recognise and challenge mistakes but they should not be allowed to shackle our force. We must work to ensure that officers are able to achieve maximum efficiency in reducing crime whilst ensuring public confidence and pride in South Yorkshire Police.

Many candidates talk of returning officers to "front line policing". These are empty words unless you have the ability to identify exactly what that front line is and have the bravery to say what it is not. I have the skills and experience to work with the public, the police and their partners to identify and prioritise exactly where our resources are needed and I have the courage to take decisions to make sure they get there.

My aim will be giving safety back to the public by giving strength back to the Force. 

Printed and promoted by Vonny Watts on behalf of Nigel Bonson both of South Yorkshire Conservatives, 1b South Terrace, Moorgate Street, Rotherham. S60 2EU