Max Wilkinson
Main Page: Max Wilkinson (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)Department Debates - View all Max Wilkinson's debates with the Leader of the House
Business of the House
Max Wilkinson Excerpts(6 days, 13 hours ago)
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Lucy Powell
May I take this opportunity to welcome my hon. Friend back as the MP for Leigh and Atherton? [Interruption.] It is a short holiday that she should never have had from being the MP for Leigh, as it was then. I also thank her for all the work that she has done as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on ADHD. I am sure that this would be a very good topic for a Westminster Hall debate if she should apply for one.
Max Wilkinson (Cheltenham) (LD)
On Monday, Gloucestershire’s police and crime commissioner suspended the county’s chief constable. Yesterday, we learned that the deputy chief constable had been suspended in January and subsequently retired in June. These matters remain under investigation and I do not seek to comment on the specifics of the cases, as that would be unfair to the individuals concerned. Given that this leaves our local police force with its two most senior posts vacant, will the Leader of the House consider making time for a debate, or a ministerial statement, on what happens in these difficult circumstances where a leadership vacuum emerges in police forces?
Lucy Powell
The hon. Member would not expect me to comment on the individual cases that he outlines. We do have Home Office questions coming up on 21 October and I am sure that he can raise those matters there. One thing that we have found since the election is that morale and leadership in our police forces are not what they could be, which is why the Home Secretary is embarking on a recruitment drive and reforms in our police force to ensure that we have all the police that we need.