Police paperwork must be cut, say Tories
Police paperwork must be cut and police officers returned to the streets Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said today.
Outlining the Conservatives’ stance on violent crime, David Davis said that, contrary to government reports, violent crime and the fear of crime was increasing and would continue to do so if the Labour party was re-elected.
He said the Tories would stop the rising tide of paperwork, which was keeping “policemen and women chained to their desks”.
This undermines police moral and public confidence, he said.
“To people who fear walking down their own streets, this is absurd,” he explained. “They want police on the beat catching criminals, not filling out forms.”
He said the Conservative would remedy this by giving the local community responsibility for the policing agenda rather than “bureaucracy in Whitehall”.
And, Mr Davis claimed that Labour was failing to recognise the level of crime, which he said was spreading out to Britain’s suburbs.
“The violence and lawlessness of some of Britain’s inner cities is already spreading to suburbs and market towns across the country. Bookham, Surrey. Staffordshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Yorkshire.”
He added: “Let me tell Mr Blair straight. Life in Britain today is very different outside your security bubble.”
Labour say that they have increased the number of the police on the streets and would increase the number of Community Support Officers if elected. The Liberal Democrats are promising to recruit 10,000 new police officers.
Speaking at the same press conference as Mr Davis, Theresa May, the Conservatives’ family spokesperson, said that drugs were the root causes of violent crime.
Promising to get tough, Ms May said: “They ruin families and destroy communities too. As the dealers and junkies take over, families move out, turning neighbourhoods into ghettos.
“We cannot afford to sit back as drugs ruin more families and destroy more communities. We need a coherent, committed, consistent anti-drug programme.
“Some people say that drugs are a matter of personal freedom. I disagree. It’s time we stopped blurring the distinction between right and wrong. We need to send a clear message: “Drugs are wrong”. No quibbling. No hedging.”
