Government
is Ignoring Roads Policing, says Fed
The
Federation has attacked the government for failing to take roads policing
seriously.
It said they have failed to listen to independent policing experts and
the advice of its own Transport Select Committee about the importance
of effective policing of the roads and adequate numbers of roads policing
officers.
Following a three month period of considering the recommendations of
the 'Roads Policing and Technology: Getting the balance Right' report
the association accused the government has 'unashamedly' ignoring evidence
of the damage caused by cutting the number of dedicated road policing
officers.
Jan Berry, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said:
‘There is no logic to the government's approach. Together with
other witnesses the Police Federation highlighted the need to have fully
trained police officers patrolling our roads, to both deter and detect
criminal activity which is not just confined to the pavements. Despite
this recommendation and the warnings given the government is choosing
to ignore the dangers being highlighted; a habit which has landed them
in hot water recently. ‘
‘On the one hand they claim road policing requires specialised
knowledge, skills and equipment, then they completely contradict themselves
by claiming all police officers can do the job as well as other core
policing activities. If police officers are not using their specialist
skills on a regular basis then they will become deskilled.
‘Traffic on our roads is increasing at an unprecedented rate and
criminals will continue to use these roads. The benefit of using fully
trained roads police officers with a wealth of expertise and knowledge
cannot be counted as easily as speeding drivers caught on cameras, but
in recognising the damage caused by cutting officers out of the equation
the government must now address the situation. They still can, and must,
address the situation before it gets further out of hand.’
The Federation represents the interests of over 139,000 police officers.
Cheshire
Reinstates Roads Team
Cheshire
police has re-established its roads policing team just a year after
it was disbanded.
A number of Targeted Patrol Team (TPT) officers have undergone extensive
roads policing training as part of the new team.
Specific roads policing teams were broken up in 2005, as part of force
changes.
Traffic officers joined new teams such as Specialist Investigation and
Demand Management Units in an attempt to ensure road-related issues
were being handled as seriously as other crimes.
After a period of time, it was evident that the specialist skills required
to tackle this level of criminality and to provide greater safety for
the road users of Cheshire was being eroded.
Chief Inspector Nick Adderley is the officer who formed the team said:
‘As an innovative, forward-thinking organisation, it's important
to try new methods and techniques so that we can deliver the best possible
service to the residents and visitors of Cheshire.
‘The changes have helped us identify weaknesses and improve techniques
and I'm confident the roads policing specialists will deliver results
which make a difference,’ said CI Adderley.
The TPT is dedicated to responding to emergency calls and the shift
system of those who have undergone traffic training has been tailored
to ensure there are always road specialists on duty 24, seven.‘This
isn't about dishing out tickets or persecuting motorists. This is about
making it clear that criminal behaviour will not be tolerated on the
roads in the Western Area (Chester/Vale Royal/ Ellesmere Port &
Neston).’
The roads policing officers use both marked and unmarked police cars,
on and off-road motorbikes and bicycles.
The number of arrests, stop searches carried out, vehicles and property
seized and breath-tests conducted will all be closely monitored by senior
officers to ensure the specialist team is performing effectively and
is delivering a service the public want to see.
The results will be used to assess the effectiveness of the team and
to gauge the level of improvement they are achieving in reducing road-related
injury, anti-social behaviour and response to the public. Decisions
can then be made as to whether practices need to be amended in any way
in consultation with communities and partners agencies.
Road policing specialists work with supporting agencies and departments
such as the forces Automatic Number Plate Recognition Team, Pro-active
Policing Team and Neighbourhood Policing Units in the campaign to deny
criminals the use of the roads.
Home
Secretary John Reid is considering extending notification requirements
for offenders on the Sex Offenders Register to include on-line identities
in a bid to tackle internet child abuse.
Offenders could be made to hand over both email addresses and any screen
names they use in internet chat rooms.
Failure to comply with notification requirements of the Sex Offenders
Register is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Dr Reid made the announcement as he toured the Child Exploitation and
Online Protection Centre in London. Launched last year, it is a national
centre for child protection on the internet.
The Home Secretary said, ‘The internet can be a wonderful resource
for children, but it can also pose threats, and we must be alert to
that,' Dr Reid said. 'We already ask sex offenders to give us their
names and addresses, and I want to see if that could be extended to
their online identities too.’
Authority
Tackles Minister on Funding
Police
funding will again be high on the agenda when Northants Police Authority
chair Dr Marie Dickie meets Policing Minister Tony McNulty on Thursday.
The talks, which will take place at a national meeting between the Minister
and Police Chiefs and Authority Chairs, will focus on getting more flexibility
in setting council tax precepts and getting additional capital assistance.
Dr Dickie will be joined by Chief Constable Peter Maddison.
‘We are already looking at a budget shortfall of over £4
million during the next financial year, and if, as expected, our settlement
increase for the following three years is between 2% and 2.7%, the situation
will become worse.
‘The Force has always met their targets for efficiency savings
through both collaborative working and efficiency measures, and will
continue to try and find additional savings. However new policing initiatives
are making it more difficult to find this money without cutting back
and compromising other services, so we have to try and get more autonomy
in setting our council tax precept,’ said Dr Dickie.
Central government has set a 5% cap on the police portion of the council
tax, preventing Authorities from raising additional funds locally.
‘We do not want to ask council taxpayers to pay more than they
absolutely need to and we will always try and keep precept levels to
the minimum, but at the same time, we know from widespread consultations
that communities are willing to invest to improve local policing. We
believe that where there is this willingness, we should have more flexibility
than is allowed by the current capping regime.
‘A more flexible capping regime will enable our communities to
choose for themselves how much to invest in policing,’ concluded
Dr Dickie.
The Authority will also ask the minister for capital funding in the
form of one-off capital assistance or a special grant to help meet the
cost of the proposed Criminal Justice Centre.
‘We recently made the very difficult decision to undertake the
building of a new Criminal Justice Centre in to accommodate the expected
growth in population, and bring us up to national compliancy. The scheme
is forecast to cost £13 million in capital and, if funds are borrowed
as anticipated there will be an ongoing revenue cost to the Authority
in debt charges.
‘We will be asking the minister whether some of the money withheld
last year in order to meet the cost of mergers can be targeted for Northamptonshire
and this project,’ concluded Dr Dickie.
Met
Responds to IPCC Report on Forest Gate Arrests
The
Independent Police Complaints Commission yesterday published its findings
on an investigation into complaints made by the residents of 46 and
48 Lansdown Road following a counter terrorism operation conducted in
Forest Gate in June last year.
DAC Alf Hitchcock, Met's Diversity and Citizen Focus Directorate, said:
‘Today's independent report is clear that faced with the intelligence
we had, the operation was necessary and proportionate and had at its
heart a commitment to protect the public. The IPCC came to this conclusion
after having been provided with full access to all the available and
relevant intelligence.
‘Intelligence is taken from a range of sources and is subject to
evaluation, assessment and development to produce an overall picture
of what we are dealing with. The police then have to take very difficult
operational decisions which in this case have been examined by the IPCC
and have been found to be necessary and proportionate.
‘Since that day a number of serious allegations have been made
about the conduct and actions of our officers. These allegations had
the potential to damage public confidence in the police service and
we welcome today's opportunity to set the record straight.
‘The IPCC has conducted a thorough and independent investigation
that has concluded that the overwhelming majority of the allegations
made were unsubstantiated. The most serious of these allegations were
subject to a second level of independent scrutiny by the Crown Prosecution
Service. The ultimate conclusion is that no officer should face either
criminal or misconduct proceedings.
‘The MPS learned a great deal from Forest Gate about community
consultation and engagement and it is only with the help and support
of all Londoners that we can continue to fight the very real and serious
threat of global terrorism. The recommendations made by the IPCC will
help inform future operations.’
The IPCC investigated 153 complaints from the residents of 46 and 48
Lansdown Road. The complaints broadly related to the conduct of officers
involved in the operation, the treatment of persons arrested and of
family members not arrested and to police tactics and procedures adopted
during the raid.
Only two of the complaints were upheld, both were of a minor nature,
we nevertheless accept the Commission's findings. They relate to single
occasions where the provision of medication (painkillers) and food to
those held in custody fell below the standards expected.
Immediately after the operation there was a great deal of ill founded,
premature and one sided comment made to the media regarding the discharge
of a firearm, however in July last year the IPCC published its report
into this incident, concluding that it had been an accidental discharge
and that the officer had not committed a criminal or disciplinary offence.
Despite concerns about the number of officers involved in this operation
we would reiterate that only fifteen officers initially entered and
secured the address. The remainder of the officers were required to
help keep the public safe, to staff cordons and to deal with road closures.
The Forest Gate operation provided many learning points for the Metropolitan
Police Service about community consultation. We remain committed to
working with communities in the future during the planning, execution
and aftermath of operations and fully recognise that it is only with
the co-operation of all London's communities that we can defeat terrorism.
To read more visit http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/index/resources/evidence_reports.htm
Security
Officers Given Police Powers
Nine
members of the University of Surrey in Guildford's security team have
been given additional powers to combat crime and disorder in the first
scheme of its kind between a police force and a university.
The launch of the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme last Friday
marked the successful completion of a week-long training course by the
nine candidates.
This will allow Surrey Police's Chief Constable to accredit them to
use additional powers, including the power to require the name and address
of a person acting in an anti-social manner, and the power to confiscate
alcohol from young people under the age of 18, as problems have been
experienced in the past with groups of youths congregating on campus.
These powers will be reviewed on a regular basis.
Once accredited, the security team will be eligible to wear a special
badge and will be in direct radio link with colleagues at Guildford
Police Station.
Those who have been given the training and additional powers should
be better equipped to deal with issues on campus as well as having extra
legal protection as it is an offence to assault, obstruct or wilfully
deceive an accredited person.
West Surrey Chief Superintendent Kevin Deanus said: ‘This is the
first scheme of its kind on a university campus and represents the very
best in partnership working. This will allow the university security
team and Surrey Police to better deal with matters on the campus, by
having a closer working relationship which is backed up by legislation
and the necessary logistical support. This will be of great benefit
to the campus and the borough of Guildford as a whole.’
The Community Safety Accreditation Scheme was introduced under the Police
Reform Act 2002 and allows the Chief Constable to authorise persons
who are not police officers to exercise certain powers in order to contribute
to community safety and security, to combat crime and disorder, public
nuisance and other forms of anti-social behaviour. In order to grant
such an accreditation, the Chief Constable must be satisfied that the
person is a suitable candidate to exercise the powers, is capable of
effectively carrying them out and has received adequate training for
the exercise of those powers.
New
Asylum Decision Centre Opens
A
new Home Office facility designed to speed up asylum decisions opened
this week near Heathrow Airport.
Amadeus House - a new purpose-built asylum centre for West London and
the southeast - was officially opened by Immigration Minister Liam Byrne,
who said it will help the government meet its goal of handling asylum
decisions more efficiently every year.
The centre will be home to one of six regional teams now handling asylum
cases around the UK.
Already work on asylum applications is moving more quickly - asylum
applications are at their lowest level since 1993, and in the first
half of 2006 the government broke records for the number of failed asylum
seekers returned to their home countries.
Mr Byrne said the new regional teams - like the one at Amadeus House
- are central to that process.
He said the teams - which are being established in Cardiff, Glasgow,
Leeds, Liverpool, London and Solihull - 'are a vital part of delivering
the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's commitment to identifying
and removing those who have no right to stay in the country, while protecting
those who genuinely need our help.'
More
Senior Female Ethnic Officers Needed
Minister
for Policing Tony McNulty says women are held back in policing because
they believe they have be 'one of the boys' in order to succeed.
In a keynote speech to the National Black Police Association (NBPA)
Women's Conference, the Home Office minister said:
‘All women, whether police officers or police staff, have the same
aspirations as their male colleagues. The perception that women need
to have a proven record or need to be ‘one of the boys’ to
further their careers often acts as a barrier, preventing staff from
demonstrating their full potential and abilities. I am determined to
change this.
‘We must redress the balance of women and BME staff at higher levels
of the service and we need to ensure equal access through fair, transparent
and objective promotion and progression procedures. I believe if the
service gets it right with staff, it will get it right with potential
recruits and with the public.’
The minister went on to talk about the contribution of black officers
and staff and the NBPA mentoring initiative which helps to identify
women with leadership potential, tracking their progress and offering
support and guidance in the form of a mentor.
As of 31st March 2006 there were 31,723 female police officers and 51,019
female police staff.
Bomber
Targets Forensic Companies
Three
companies that supply forensic services to the police have been targeted
by the letter bomber, it has been revealed.
Orchid Cellmark, the Forensic Science Service's headquarters in Birmingham
and a third unnamed company in Thames Valley were all targeted by the
bomber.
An Orchid Cellmark employee was injured by the device, but the two other
packages were intercepted in time.
The attacks took place in January.
Anton Setchell, National Coordinator for Domestic Extremism, said two
of the packages were linked.
A reference on one of the envelopes to an animal rights activist, Barry
Horne, has also led police to consider animal rights extremism as a
line of enquiry.
Interview
Suite gets £35,000 Facelift
From
Monday 12th February Cleveland Police is offering both witnesses and
victims of serious crime a new ‘state of the art’ suite where
they can be interviewed away from the more officious police buildings.
The facility was a former operational support unit, but it has now undergone
a £35,000 facelift.
The two specialist interview suites feature comfortable furniture and
a relaxing decor- as well as specially designed visual and recording
features. It also features a room where police officers can monitor
interviews without disturbing the people being interviewed.
Det Chief Insp Rob Donaghy said: ‘Victims and people who have witnessed
serious crime can be left badly shocked by their ordeal. For many it
will be the first time they have had contact with the police. This suite
is designed to help put them at ease and address the trauma they have
gone through.
‘Being questioned about what is often a shocking and frightening
incident can be a terrible strain. This new facility should help the
public to cope with this arduous task and ensure that specialist officers
can obtain the best accounts from them to present at court. It may well
reduce the likelihood of witnesses having to attend court in the future.’
The facility, which incorporates a shower, bath and kitchen, will be
used by the Major Crime Units and District Officers throughout the force.
It will also be used to interview vulnerable victims of crime.
Det Chief Insp Donaghy added: ‘This is a new approach to dealing
with victims of serious crimes. We want those people who have to give
evidence - whether as a witness or a victim - to be interviewed in a
completely relaxed atmosphere, removed from a police environment. This
building does just that.’
A
drug detection machine is continuing to help combat the supply and use
of class A drugs in Berkshire East.
A total of 226 pub-goers agreed to be tested on the GE Ion Track drug
itemising device recently before they entered the Hobgoblin and Chicago
Rock Cafe in Maidenhead.
Traces of drugs were found on 10 people, who were then searched by a
police officer and refused entry. Although traces of drugs were found,
none of these individuals were found to be in possession of drugs.
The itemising machine, which can detect the tiniest traces of drugs
on the palms of people's hands, was first introduced last year and has
since been used to test over a thousand pub and club-goers in venues
across Berkshire East, including nine in the Royal Borough.
Debie Pearmain, Licensing Officer, said: ‘In some circumstances,
it is possible to pick up traces of drugs without knowing you have been
in contact with them.
‘However, the general message is that drugs will not be tolerated,
and the Designated Premises Supervisors' strict policy is to refuse
entry to those people who test positive.’
Debie says that similar visits are planned throughout the year: ‘By
working together with the Designated Premises Supervisors in pubs and
clubs, the aim is to make venues safer places away from drugs and drug
dealers.’
Force
Offers Motorbike Training to Cut Deaths
North
Yorkshire Police are to offer more motorcycle skills courses as part
of the force's continuing drive to cut road casualties.
The Bike Safe skills workshop, aimed squarely at giving riders better
skills for safer, more enjoyable riding costs £50.
Sergeant Pete Mason, the force's Bike Safe Co-ordinator, said: ‘Some
riders will spend thousands on a fabulous high performance bike, then
equip it with the latest updates and accessories, but we offer a far
better deal - for £50 we could save your life.’
The course is aimed at sports bike riders, but all motorcyclists would
benefit from the courses and are very welcome.
Sgt Mason said: ‘It is a well-known fact that very few riders appreciate
the need for further training after they have passed their bike test.
We aim to bridge the gap between that basic skill level and the kind
of advanced training that enables riders to combine tremendous enjoyment
with a much higher level of safety.’
The workshop consists of two modules.
Police
in Cambridgeshire are joining staff from other agencies and holding
a disability awareness day on Monday, February 19th.
The event follows the publication of the Constabulary's disability equality
scheme and the national introduction of the general duty for all police
employees to promote equality for disabled people in their day-to-day
work.
The event, which will be opened by Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hopkins,
takes place between 11am and 3pm at the Dolphin Hotel in St Ives.
Inspector Jayne Pascoe, who works in the Constabulary's diversity unit,
said: ‘This event provides an opportunity for police staff and
members of the public to find out more about the effective delivery
of policing services to disabled people, and what the new general duty
means.
‘The day will be informal, and people are welcome to come and go
as they please.’
'Clunk
Click' goes Europe-Wide
Forces
through Europe are set to support TISPOL's seatbelt enforcement campaign
this month.
The campaign was due to run between 19th and 25th February and is co-ordinated
to include police forces throughout Europe.
Seat belt wearing saves over 2,000 lives every year in the UK and could
prevent over 6,000 deaths and 380,000 injuries every year in Europe.
Adam Briggs, ACPO lead on European roads policing (TISPOL UK representative)
and Assistant Chief Constable of Cleveland Police said:
‘The main aim of the campaign is to ensure that people driving
or being a passenger in a vehicle are wearing a seatbelt. By increasing
media coverage, the campaign will ensure that Europeans will be in no
doubt as to the position in their country.
TISPOL President Eddy Greif said: ‘Research clearly shows that
intensive campaigns of this nature have a positive affect in persuading
people to use their seatbelts. TISPOL is committed to working with partners
to reduce deaths and injury on Europe's roads and ensuring use of seatbelts
is a crucial part of this strategy.’
TISPOL - the European Traffic Police Network - aims to improve the safety
and security of Europe's roads.
Membership currently stands at 25 European countries, each of which
put forward a TISPOL representative.
In a recent day of action, as part of a Scotland-wide initiative, Strathclyde
Police caught 171 adults (drivers or passengers) without seatbelts.
One child was travelling in a car whilst unrestrained.
Chief Inspector Paul Fleming of Road Policing in Strathclyde said: ‘It
is of deep concern that a significant number of vehicle occupants choose
to travel whilst not protected by a seat belt. They have nothing to
gain and everything, especially their lives, to lose.’
Messaging
System First for Kent
Kent
Police has launched a new messaging system to keep all communities across
the county informed about local crime and encourage them to tell the
force about suspicious activity in their area.
Kent Community Messaging, a web based system, is the first of its kind
in the country, and the latest development in the force's drive to keep
neighbourhoods across the county safe.
It works by:
alerting residents to local offences and witness appeals
offering advice on how they can protect themselves
encouraging people to come forward with potentially vital information
- for example, sightings of a missing person, the whereabouts of a suspicious
vehicle or details and descriptions that could help officers catch offenders
Users can choose to receive information by email, fax, phone, internet
or in real time via text messages.
Information is published by Neighbourhood Watch liaison officers and
volunteers and then distributed to registered users.
Tried and tested
Kent Community Messaging was successfully piloted for two years in a
town centre and has become so successful it is now being rolled out
across the county.
During the pilot some 7,400 people joined up - now up to 10,000 individuals
are already receiving messages each week.
Officers are confident that sharing information this way will lead to
more criminals being caught and provide an important tool in finding
witnesses who may have vital information.
Kent Police aims to expand the service to cover specific groups such
as wildlife and faith groups and those with specialist interests.
Chief Constable Michael Fuller: 'Kent Community Messaging has a major
part to play in how we communicate with residents in Kent and I'm certain
this will make a real difference to reducing crime and catching those
responsible.'
Ann Barnes, Chair of the Kent Police Authority speaking at the launch
said:
'This is a great step forward for Kent Police. The more that Kent Community
Messaging is used the greater the opportunities become.
'It's fantastic that Kent is leading on this and now some 13 other forces
are adopting a similar system.
'This system will help act as the eyes and the ears of the community
and ensure we are reaching those who feel isolated and vulnerable in
rural areas.'
Force
Given Green Light to Use Accredited Status
Lothian
and Borders Police has been given the green light to continue as an
accredited Investors In People employer following a successful review.
In 2005 the force was placed in ‘retaining recognition’ which
meant the force had to demonstrate to IiP Scotland that it merited its
continued IiP status.
An action plan was put together by Lothian and Borders Police to deal
with the issues raised by IiP and at the review in December 2006 assessors
declared that the force had made major improvements.
Areas identified as good practice included: the creation of developmental
placements for support staff, a forcewide training coordination review,
the involvement of Special Constables in their role development and
the use of 'recognition' letters to thank individuals for their contributions
to the force.
Peter Thickett, Director of Human Resources at Lothian and Borders Police,
said he was delighted the force's hard work regarding IiP accreditation
had been recognised.
He said: ‘Issues highlighted by the previous year's report have
been addressed by our action plan. We have always been confident in
the quality of the training provided to our staff and are delighted
that our progress in overall coordination has been acknowledged by our
re-recognition.’
The IiP Recognition Panel, that approved the force's re-recognition,
stated: ‘The organisation has obviously worked hard and meaningfully
delivered their action plan within the 12 month period. They are to
be commended on the use of the IiP Standard to assist them to shift
the culture by reviewing and improving their people processes and evaluation.
‘Some very positive examples of good practice were illustrated
and the panel totally support the assessor's identified areas of strength
and development. Obviously the continuous improvement path is one that
this organisation understands and will continue to go down using the
standard for guidance.’
Peter Russian, the Chief Executive of IiP Scotland also congratulated
the force. He said: ‘Lothian and Borders Police's continued success
is a testament to the management and employee team and the effort they
have both invested in pursuit of improvement.’
A further review will be held in three years time to ensure the force
continues to meet the IiP standard.
Fixed
Penalty System Misused, say Retailers
Fixed
penalty notices, introduced for shoplifting offences less than three
years ago, are being routinely abused, according to retailers.
Plans to extend the existing system of on the spot fines for first offences
to include repeat offenders, with an 'on the street apology' for the
first criminal act have caused concern among the retail community.
The British Retail Consortium says it is 'seriously concerned' about
the proposals contained in the Home Office consultation on tackling
anti-social behaviour.
Penalty Notices for Disorder (PND) were introduced to deal with first
time offences for the theft of goods under the value of £200.
When they were introduced for shop theft in 2004 the BRC raised a number
of concerns relating to their application which have since proven correct.
PNDs have been inconsistently applied across police forces. They have
been issued incorrectly to repeat offenders, issued without the consent
of victims and issued for the theft of goods worth more than the prescribed
£200 limit. They have also failed to stem the rapid rise in the
number of shoplifting offences, which have risen by 70 per cent since
2000, say the BRC.
A lack of up to date records on repeat offenders and a failure to share
this information between police forces has also led to a situation where
an offender can be arrested for three separate shoplifting offences
in three police precincts in a single day and face no more than a fine.
The BRC believes this is unacceptable.
Extending the use of on the spot fines will further dilute penalties
for shop crime, which costs the industry £2.1bn a year, and will
give offenders to the green light to re-offend.
BRC Director General Kevin Hawkins said: ‘The average shoplifter
makes off with £149 worth of goods every time they steal. It is
a nonsense to think a repeat offender is going to be put off by an £80
fine. And what kind of message does it send to a first time offender
if all they have to do is say a quick 'sorry' before heading off home?
‘The Home Office simply doesn't understand the nature of the crime.
It is not some victimless bit of naughtiness. It has a significant human
and social cost, leaves shop staff open to acts of violence and costs
retailers more than £2 billion a year.
‘We're not suggesting that the kid who makes a one-off mistake
should be nailed to the wall but repeat offenders should know that if
they go on stealing they will be punished. 'Sorry' or a token fine are
no deterrent. However full prisons are the Home Office needs to show
it recognises shop crime matters by rejecting these proposals.’
Electronic
tagging devices are to be fitted to bicycles across Guildford in a bid
to halt the growing increase in the number of thefts in the borough.
As part of a crack down on cycle thefts, Guildford Police have purchased
1,000 Trovan radio frequency identity tags which will be fitted free
of charge at special cycle marking days to be held at various locations
throughout the year.
Guildford Crime Reduction Advisor PC Graeme Ingate explained: ‘Once
fitted, these tags cannot be removed and means that the bicycle is easily
identifiable. We will be targeting specific locations where we have
seen an increase in the number of cycle thefts and use this new approach
as a deterrent to would-be thieves.’
The electronic tags are hidden in the frame of the bicycle and have
a unique code number. The code number, the bicycle and owner details
are registered on a 24 hour database. The code can then be read with
a scanner carried by the police and they can check the database to enable
the lawful ownership of the bicycle to be confirmed.
PC Ingate said: ‘Scanners will be carried by Neighbourhood Specialist
Officers and Police Community Support Officers so that they can carry
out targeted patrols in areas which have experienced problems with cycle
thefts. This will enable them to stop cyclists and ask them to verify
ownership of their bicycle. If the cycle is not fitted with a tag they
will still be asked questions to confirm that it does belong to them.’
Fines
Overturned in Summons Mix-Up
Motorists
who were summoned to court with the wrong form are to have their speeding
fines overturned, Devon and Cornwall police have announced.
The move affects a number of motorists caught exceeding the 40-mph speed
limit in force at roadworks on the A30 at Whiddon Down between January
2006 and January 2007.
The motorists will now have their fines overturned after it was discovered
they had been summonsed using an incorrect Temporary Speed Restriction
Order.
Devon and Cornwall police will be writing to each of the drivers identified.
HMCS will commence procedures under the Magistrates Courts Act to overturn
these convictions, returning where appropriate, fines and costs.
This process will link to the DVLA who will deal with the removal of
any points from drivers' licences.
Chief Inspector Steve Torr of the Devon & Cornwall Constabulary
Criminal Justice Department said, ‘An internal investigation has
been commenced to establish how the processes have been incorrectly
applied.
‘We are working with all agencies involved with the Safety Camera
Partnership to ensure the continued accuracy of the administrative processes,
and to ensure effective detection and prosecution is carried out.
‘The fact remains that each of these drivers was exceeding the
speed limit’