A crackdown on county lines gangs and improving confidence in policing were among the priorities unveiled in the Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire’s new Police and Crime Plan, writes Mark Smith.
Conservative John Dwyer officially presented the plan alongside the force’s Chief Constable Mark Roberts today (November 1).
In addition to outlining the wider strategy, the document sets out how the commissioner will hold the Chief Constable to account on behalf of the public.
It is split into six key themes, which are:
Prevent and tackle crime
Make Cheshire’s roads safer
Deliver justice for victims of crime
Protect vulnerable and at-risk people
Improve public confidence in policing
Modernise the police service
Mr Dwyer, speaking at the constabulary’s HQ in Winsford, said: “The plan is based on conversations we had during my campaign and with the public since then and during the consultation process.
“What I’m saying to the chief is ‘this is what the public want from you chief, what do you need from me to do it?’.”
Chief Constable Roberts said policing had been shaken by the murder of Sarah Everard.
He said: “While we need to keep balance and recognise that the vast majority of people in policing are really good people, equally we can’t be complacent, so we need to be rigorous with our internal processes.”
The Chief Constable added he wanted to make Cheshire a “hostile environment” for criminal gangs coming from outside the county, so called ‘county lines’ criminals.
He said: “We’re identifying people travelling into the country from as far afield as London, the Midlands, Manchester and Merseyside when frankly they’re clearly here for no good.
“When you find a team full of people from one of the major cities during the early hours of the morning, they’re not here to visit Chester, the Ice Cream Farm or Jodrell Bank, there’s no real good explanation for why they’re here, so we’re quite candid that if we suspect you’re here for no good, if there’s a crime here we will follow it up and come and see you.
“That’s to ensure Cheshire isn’t perceived as a soft touch.”
To read the Police and Crime Plan 2 go to www.cheshire-pcc.gov.uk/what-i-do/making-cheshire-safer/police-and-crime-plan
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