Crime and Policing Bill amendments to reach Parliament

The government is set to table amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill later this week, following correspondence from minister of state for policing and crime prevention, Rt Hon Dame Diana Johnson DBE MP, to the Public Bill Committee.

The Crime Policing Bill, now in the Committee Stage in the House of Commons, is to support the delivery of the ‘safer streets’ mission proposed by the government, and bring in a series of measures to address knife crime, violence against women and girls, anti-social behaviour, serious and organised crime, terrorism, and youth radicalisation.

One of the amendments is to provide a presumption of anonymity for firearms officers who are subject to criminal trial following a shooting, which will apply during court proceedings and in media reporting up until the person is convicted. This follows an accountability review that raised the risk firearms officers face from criminal gangs, and so the new amendment will better protect them and their families from such a threat.

Included in the Bill will also be new measures to improve the timeliness and appropriateness of investigations into police use of force and the rights of victims by aligning the threshold for referrals by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) of officers tot he Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to that used by police when referring cases involving members of the public to speed up processes and free up the system.

Following an accountability review, it was found that the current system does not command the confidence of either the public or the police in its holding of officers to account. Misconduct proceedings are often delayed for years, which hinders complainants, police officers, and the police forces.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The proud British tradition of policy by consent depends on mutual bonds of trust between the police and the communities they serve. That’s why we have set out an ambitious package of measures to rebuild both public trust in policy and the confidence of police officers in their vital work to keep the public safe.

“Police officers in specialist roles who make split-second decisions to keep the public safe must have the confidence to carry out their duties, knowing that the systems which hold them to account for their decision are fair.

“Too often those processes have involved unacceptable delays and confusion, which has been damaging both for the police and the public. These changes will help to boost confidence that the system will work swiftly and effectively for all those involved.”

Additionally, new measures to the Bill will mean that all serving officers will need to pass background checks as a legal requirement, which will also mean that officers unable to meet the vetting requirement will be removed. This will strengthen the police force as well as boosting trust among communities and officers who can be confident in the colleagues they work alongside.

Officers can fail the vetting for many reasons, including sexual abuse and domestic violence, and the new measure will ensure a zero tolerance policy for gross misconduct. Under the current system, although there are processes in place to deal with allegations of misconduct, failing vetting alone might not be enough to dismiss them, and officers might simply be moved from a public-facing role, while still being on full pay in the force doing something else.

Ms Cooper said: “In recent years, serious cases which have badly failed all proper policing standards have damaged public trust in the officers who are supposed to protect them, and undermined the majority of brave, committed officers who work tirelessly to keep us safe.

“It is simply not acceptable that officers who are clearly unfit to service or pose a risk to their colleagues cannot be removed. That’s why these new rules are essential and it is why this government has been working closely with forces to overcome these barriers to restore confidence in policing. Our Plan for Change is to rebuilt standards and trust — officers of only the highest standards, with the tools and backing they need to do everything in their legal power to protect our neighbourhoods.”