Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government why 2020 was the year used as the basis for data to support the decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners and whether more up-to-date information is now available.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The cost of local police governance, according to data published by Office of Police and Crime Commissioners across England and Wales, was approximately £93m in 2023/24. We are working with the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners to obtain more up to date information about the costs of police governance, to inform ongoing work on the design and implementation of alternative governance arrangements.
We expect to be able save at least £20m per annum from 2028/29 as a result of aligning back office and support arrangements for policing governance with wider local government functions. We will be undertaking work to identify further savings as part of our work on future governance arrangements.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence there is that the introduction of Police and Crime Commissioners has had an adverse impact on the (1) number, and (2) quality, of candidates for the post of chief constable and whether they will publish this evidence.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Following the announcement by the Policing Minister on 13 November that the government will abolish Police and Crime Commissioners, we are working with local government and policing to design new arrangements for the oversight of policing, including relationships between Chief Constables.
Further detail will be set out in the forthcoming Police Reform White Paper.
The Home Office does not collect data on Chief Constable tenure.
Despite the efforts of many individual PCCs, the model of a direct 1:1 relationship between elected Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables has not always facilitated effective management of police forces.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence is available for their estimate that the abolition of Police and Crime Commissioners would save £20m a year.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The cost of local police governance, according to data published by Office of Police and Crime Commissioners across England and Wales, was approximately £93m in 2023/24. We are working with the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners to obtain more up to date information about the costs of police governance, to inform ongoing work on the design and implementation of alternative governance arrangements.
We expect to be able save at least £20m per annum from 2028/29 as a result of aligning back office and support arrangements for policing governance with wider local government functions. We will be undertaking work to identify further savings as part of our work on future governance arrangements.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have prepared an impact assessment of the decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners; and if so, whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The announcement of the Government’s intention to abolish the Police and Crime Commissioner model is the first of a series of reforms that will be set out in the forthcoming Police Reform White Paper, to drive quality, consistency and efficiency in policing and ensure it is set up to deliver for the public.
We will bring forward legislation to give effect to the reforms in the White Paper, including legislating for alternative police governance arrangements, when parliamentary time allows. An impact assessment will be published alongside this legislation.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on victims of crime of the abolition of Police and Crime Commissioners.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We recognise the important work PCCs do to commission vital support services for victims and witnesses of crime. We are working closely with the Ministry of Justice to establish how PCCs’ existing victims’ responsibilities will operate within the new police governance system. Ensuring continuity of support for victims in the future arrangements will be a key priority.
We are establishing transition working groups to consider the design and implementation of the future governance arrangements. One of these will specifically focus on partnerships and commissioning, including victims’ responsibilities.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence there is that the introduction of Police and Crime Commissioners weakened local police accountability; and whether they will publish any such evidence.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) were established in 2012 with the promise of making the police more accountable and connected to the communities they serve. But data shows that awareness of PCCs has remained low, with only a quarter of electors turning out at last year’s elections.
Furthermore, as recognised in a House Of Commons research briefing on Police and Crime Commissioners published in October 2024, despite the efforts of many individual PCCs the model of a direct 1:1 relationship between elected Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables has not always facilitated effective management of police forces; and the model has siloed policing under a separate directly elected individual, creating structural, and in some cases political barriers, to collaboration across local services.
We will work with policing and local government stakeholders to ensure that future governance arrangements maintain strong oversight of policing, whilst maximising the join-up of local services.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the additional cost of including Police and Crime Commissioners in the elections of (1) 2016, (2) 2021 and (3) 2024.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The cost of the 2016 Police and Crime Commissioner elections was £49.6m. A detailed report on the cost of that election can be found at (attached) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-costs-of-the-2016-police-and-crime-commissioner-elections.
The cost of the 2021 Police and Crime Commissioner election was £49.3m and a detailed report will be published shortly.
The final cost of the 2024 PCC election will not be known until all the Returning Officer claims have been scrutinised and settled. However, the estimated cost is approximately £87m as set out in the (attached) The Police and Crime Commissioner Elections (Local Returning Officers’ and Police Area Returning Officers’ Charges) Order 2024.
These figures represent the total cost of running the PCC elections. Where PCC elections were combined with other polls, some costs – such as for polling stations – were shared across all polls. This reduced the overall cost for each election compared to running them separately. The cost of PCC elections is met from the Consolidated Fund.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to conclude the due diligence exercise and compliance assessment initiated by Home Office officials to determine the appropriate sporting body to govern the endorsement processes for basketball in England, Scotland and Wales under the International Sportsperson visa route.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The due diligence exercise and compliance assessment to establish compliance under the International Sportsperson visa route are ongoing. Assessments and lines of enquiry may be revisited throughout. We are working closely with the bodies relevant to basketball, including the Department for Culture, Media and Sports, to ensure we have a full evidential basis prior to reaching a conclusion. All bodies included in the exercise will be notified when the exercises are completed.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what conclusions for their drugs policy they have drawn from the evidence about the effects of cannabis on health set out in Epidemiology of Cannabis: Genotoxicity, Neurotoxicity, Epigenomics and Aging by A.S. Reece and G.K. Hulse.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is committed to reducing the harm from all illicit drugs. Any illegal drug use, including cannabis, can be harmful, both from immediate side-effects and long-term physical and mental health problems. It can, for some, have a negative impact on their fertility. Cannabis use can contribute to and exacerbate existing mental health problems or can accelerate their development in people predisposed to mental health problems. We are aware of the book, ‘Epidemiology of Cannabis: Genotoxicity, Neurotoxicity, Epigenomics and Aging by A.S. Reece and G.K. Hulse’. No conclusions have been drawn from the evidence set out within it.
Information on the impact cannabis has on health can be found on the National Health Service website and Talk to FRANK, the Government’s drugs information and advice service. The Frank website also has basic harm reduction advice and details of drug treatment services and support organisations.
We know that drug treatment is protective and the number of places in treatment for people who use non-opiate drugs including cannabis is being increased by 30,000 compared to 2021/22, including 5,000 more places for young people in treatment.
The number of people in England receiving treatment for problems with cannabis use increased from 63,854 in 2021/22 to 74,931 people in 2023/24.
Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what data they collect on the state of compliance of GP surgeries with the regulations relating to making buildings fully accessible to those with disabilities, as set out in the Equality Act 2010 (Disability) Regulations 2010 and Part M of the Building Regulations 2010.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England undertakes a mandatory data collection from all general practices (GPs) in England, which they must complete every year, by way of an annual survey called the electronic practice self-declaration (eDEC). Within that survey, questions cover the practice’s premises and equipment with regards to service provision, compliance with health and safety regulations, and infection control, as defined in the contract, specifically as per Regulations 12(2)(d-f) and (h) and 15 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) and Regulations 2014 (as amended) and the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974). The survey asks GPs to confirm that at least one consulting room in the practice premises is accessible to wheelchair users. NHS England holds this data at a national level.
NHS England also publishes data on the accessibility of practice buildings, which is already within the public domain on the NHS.UK website, although this may not specifically include the eDec data return.