David J. Farley of Plympton, Plymouth, United Kingdom

David J. Farley of Plympton, Plymouth, United Kingdom

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Time for a Royal Commission into British Policing ?

My apologies for the lack of postings of late but I have been on holiday in the Canary Islands and am only now getting back to my normal pattern of daily routine.



A comprehensive review of policing needs to be carried out to equip both senior officers and front line PCs with the powers they need for the 21st Century, according to the Chairman of the Association of Chief Police Officers.

Sir Hugh Orde said the last time a fundamental overhaul had been carried out was nearly 50 years ago, when the demands on officers and the dynamic of society were very different.

Orde’s views were shared by former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair, who believed that current structures and procedures, set up in the wake of the 1962 Royal Commission, were not up to scratch for the modern era.

The Commission’s findings, which led to the Police Act 1964, form the foundation of current law enforcement. The legislation reduced the number of forces through amalgamation and created new Police Authorities among other far-reaching changes.

However, in an interview with the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme, Orde maintained that terrorism, new technology and social change meant that a new approach was needed.

He said: “Policing has moved on – with the international threat, the national threat and cyber crime, we are in a different place. We need an independent assessment.”

Orde said that leaders were making tough decisions about how to balance resources with “anti-social behaviour at one end, international terrorism at the other” on a regular basis.

He added: “I think it is important that we step back and look at this now rather than wait for some crisis that will drive change – it could be a multi-site terrorist attack.

“I would be more comfortable knowing that we have the best structure possible to deal with that threat because we’ve looked at it before the crisis, not on the back of it.”

Sir Ian Blair was also worried that the last review of policing was set up during an era that pre-dated even he threat posed by Irish Republican terrorism – and he pointed out that there had been vast technological and social changes since.

He believed that there needed to be “a situation in which policing is assessed again for the 21st Century”. Speaking at the PoliceOracle.com backed Future of Policing seminar in London, Blair added: “We have not had a review in a holistic way since 1962. Then the police did not have radios. There was no internet and no terrorism.

“The people that created the last Royal Commission took their recommendations to the Home Office. We have had three separate Home Office buildings since then.”

“I rest my case.”

Article courtesy of www.policeoracle.com

Saturday, March 06, 2010

England my England




Goodbye to my England, So long my old friend

Your days are numbered, being brought to an end

To be Scottish, Irish or Welsh that's fine

But don't say you're English, that's way out of line.

The French and the Germans may call themselves such

So may Norwegians, the Swedes and the Dutch

You can say you are Russian or maybe a Dane

But don't say you're English ever again.

At Broadcasting House the word is taboo

In Brussels it's scrapped, in Parliament too

Even schools are affected. Staff do as they're told

They must not teach children about England of old.

Writers like Shakespeare, Milton and Shaw

The pupils don't learn about them anymore

How about Agincourt, Hastings, Arnhem or Mons ?

When England lost hosts of her very brave sons.

We are not Europeans, how can we be?

Europe is miles away, over the sea

We're the English from England, let's all be proud

Stand up and be counted - Shout it out loud!

Let's tell our Government and Brussels too

We're proud of our heritage and the Red, White and Blue

Fly the flag of Saint George or the Union Jack

Let the world know - WE WANT OUR ENGLAND BACK!!!!