Labour to scrap police and crime commissioners in England and Wales

Police and Crime Commissioners in England and Wales are set to be scrapped by the government.

The system, introduced by the Conservatives under David Cameron in 2012, saw an official elected to be responsible for overseeing each of the 43 police forces across the two nations.

However, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the system had failed and said on Monday: “The introduction of police and crime commissioners by the last government was a failed experiment. I will introduce new reforms so police are accountable to their local mayoralties or local councils. The savings will fund more neighbourhood police on the beat across the country, fighting crime and protecting our communities.”

Addressing the House of Commons, Home Office minister Sarah Jones said the move would save £100 million this parliament. Once delivered, the change would save £20 million a year, or equivalent to 320 extra police constables.

Jones said: “The reality is that the PCC model has weakened local police accountability and has had perverse impacts on the recruitment of chief constables.

“They have failed to inspire confidence in local people, in stark contrast to the mayoral model, which has clearly been ultimately more successful.”

The next set of elections for PCCs was due in May 2028 but will now no longer take place, with their roles now being incorporated into the responsibilities of councils and mayors.

The Police Federation has welcomed the abolition of the roll and said they “look forward to helping shape whatever accountability structures replace directly-elected police and crime commissioners”.

Currently, there are 17 Labour police and crime commissioners across England and Wales, with 18 Conservative, one Plaid Cymru and one Reform.

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