The battle over policing has been reignited with a fresh bid by Conservative councillors to drive new reforms. Rows between Scotland Yard and deputy London mayor, Kit Malthouse, over who controls the Metropolitan Police have been renewed in earnest. The MJ can reveal that at a high-level meeting, Met Police chief, Sir Paul Stephenson, was told that objecting to reforms enabling council leaders to decide local priorities was unsustainable. Irrespective of the outcome of the general election, leading councillors have signalled they want to end the current system of police authorities to improve accountability. A senior council leader involved with the talkssaid: ‘Every part of the public sector is facing up to change. That must include the police, which is centrally rather than locally driven. There is a better way that is more efficient and more effective.' The issue is shaping up into a fight between reformers and councillors in the police authorities and police chiefs themselves. Just how divided the two sides are came with research from the Association of Police Authorities (APA), which compared England and Wales with countries with other accountability models. It said: ‘The research found there is no evidence to suggest that boards or commissions appointed by elected mayors in the US truly reflect the communities they serve. The research also found there has been consistent movement in the US towards making police oversight more independent.' The Association of Chief Police Officers said its stance remained unchanged. A statement by ACPO president, Sir Hugh Orde, said: ‘If people seriously think some form of elected individual is better placed to oversee policing, I am interested to see the details of how that is going to work. ‘Every professional bone in my body tells me that this is a bad idea which could drive a coach and horses through the current model of accountability.'
