| |
|
|
News Release 22nd June 2006DELAY ANNOUNCED IN STAFFORDSHIRE POLICE MERGERMichael Fabricant has called for "two cheers" following the Home Secretary's announcement to put a temporary hold on plans to absorb the Staffordshire Police into the West Midlands Police Service. "These mergers were opposed by the Association of Police Authorities, would have put millions on our council tax bills, and in my opinion would have seen still fewer police officers in our streets in Staffordshire" says Michael Fabricant. In a letter to Michael Fabricant, Home Secretary John Reid has said "We want to work constructively with the policing community to try to reach a consensus on issues such as cost, council tax, and local accountability as well as on the timing of mergers.... I don't want these discussions to be constrained by an unnecessarily tight timetable. That is why I have announced that I do not propose to lay any Orders for enforced police mergers before the Summer recess." Michael Fabricant adds: "So rather like the forced merger of the Staffordshire Ambulance Service, the time limit for the take-over has been lifted but the Home Secretary has made it clear that he still intends to go ahead with this programme of enforced police mergers. Still, at least a delay has been announced. It remains to be seen for how long." |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
