Are police commissioners all visibility and no substance, asks Birmingham academic
He writes: “The plain fact is that it was the independent members of the police authority who were the main energy source, had the preponderance of relevant personal skills and did most of the work.
“That still left a rump of elected members who were essentially going through the motions. At many meetings, some members would arrive late without having read the papers, spend much of the time flicking through messages on their BlackBerrys, say next to nothing and leave early.
“If this behaviour reached a critical mass, the torpor that hung over the proceedings was almost palpable. Senior police officers, who were giving up valuable time to attend such meetings, were naturally obliged to keep their thoughts to themselves.”
In common with all other police authorities, WMPA consisted of 17 members – nine were elected councillors reflecting the party-political balance across the force area, and eight were independent members with business expertise in various fields.
WMPA disappeared in November 2012 to make way for an elected commissioner, Wolverhampton Labour councillor Bob Jones, a former police authority member, who appointed a deputy and three assistant commissioners, all Labour councillors.
Prof Amann contrasts the selection of councillor members of WMPA, a process involving plenty of “horse-trading” among West Midlands councils, with the appointment of independent members following a national advertising campaign and rigorous interview process.
He notes that he independent WMPA members in 2007 included a former chief executive of the Cosworth motor racing company, the recently retired chief executive of the National Association of School Governors, an experienced magistrate with strong links to education and the army, the regional head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, and the regional Head of The Samaritans.
