Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Marcus Jones and Damian Green

Monday 28th April 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con)]

T4. With crime down by more than 10% since 2010, and by 11% in Warwickshire, will my right hon. Friend join me in commending the hard-working officers of the Warwickshire police force for their contribution to that? Does he agree that the Opposition were wrong to suggest that crime would rise as we started to deal with the legacy of deficit and debt that Labour left behind?

[The Minister for Policing, Criminal Justice and Victims (Damian Green)]

My hon. Friend makes a good point. I would add to his point about the Warwickshire force the fact that it and its neighbour, the West Mercia force, have been among the most successfully radical in collaborating across force boundaries. One reason that they are providing such good services to the people of Warwickshire is that they have managed to merge back-office functions and specialist functions, meaning that they can spend more time cutting and preventing crime, which is what my hon. Friend’s constituents want.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Marcus Jones and Damian Green

Monday 28th October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con)]

T3. Several constituents of mine who have made complaints against the police to the IPCC feel that it did not have the necessary teeth to act on their grievance. Notwithstanding my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary’s previous answer, will the Minister say what more can be done to deal with this situation?

[The Minister for Policing, Criminal Justice and Victims (Damian Green)]

As my hon. Friend will just have heard, it is precisely to address this genuine public concern that we are increasing not only the resources available to the IPCC but its powers, so that it can take on the serious and sensitive cases. The powers we have given it are ones the IPCC has requested because it has identified the gaps in its own powers.