Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services entitled PEEL 2021/22 – An inspection of Essex Police, published on 14 October 2022, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the performance of Essex Police.

It is the responsibility of His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) to assess the operational performance of forces in England and Wales. We work closely with the Inspectorate to monitor individual forces’ performance.

Roger Hirst, as the directly elected Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (PFCC) for Essex, is responsible for holding the Chief Constable to account for the performance of Essex Police.

To drive up performance and standards across forces, ensuring communities can have confidence in their local police force, the Home Secretary announced on 19 November that she intends to create a new Performance Unit in the Home Office. This will harness national data to monitor performance and direct improvements, building on the existing work of the College of Policing, HMICFRS, National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) and PCCs.