On Thursday 15th November, you will have the oppportunity to elect the Thames Valley's first Police & Crime Commissioner.
What is a police and crime commissioner?
Police Commissioner is a new job introduced by the Government to bring direct democratic accountability to England’s policing.
The Commissioner will be a local figure with a powerful mandate directly from the public, and will actively drive the fight against crime and anti social behaviour in the Thames Valley police force area.
He or she will be a Police and Crime Commissioner. This means a much broader and more direct remit: including community safety, the prevention of crime, tackling drugs, and many other things.
Who should I vote for?
The Conservative candidate is Anthony Stansfeld, a man who has the experience and knowledge to get things done. Anthony is a West Berkshire councillor with a distinguished career in both the military and in industry. He enlisted in the Army at 17. He joined the Royal Green Jackets and saw active service in Borneo and Northern Ireland. He learnt to fly helicopters at Middle Wallop and commanded various Army Air Corps Squadrons, including the Army helicopters in the Falkland Islands in the latter half of 1982.
He spent 2 years as Chief of Staff Intelligence in the Far East. On leaving the Army he was Marketing, and then, for 6 years, Managing Director of the aircraft company Pilatus Britten Norman, which had aircraft in over 100 countries. At the same time he commanded the Army reserve helicopters as a TA officer. All three UK Armed services use the aircraft he produced, and the Defender 4000, which he brought into service, is the last fully certified aircraft produced in the UK.
Until last month, Anthony was a member of the Thames Valley Police Authority. He took over as Chairman of the Performance Committee of the Thames Valley Police last year, during his time as Chairman overall crime rate has dropped by 15%, the greatest drop of any Police Force in England. He has, in conjunction with his Committee, set the exacting targets the Police have to achieve
over the next few months. He has concentrated his efforts on reducing rural crime, metal theft, and improving detection rates for household burglary, especially in Slough, Reading and Oxford, all of which havehad poor figures in the recent past. He has also been vice chairman of the Audit, Governance and Risk Committee which monitors the Police financial affairs. He was lead member of the Authority for the introduction of Neighbourhood policing.
How do I vote?
Polling station are open from 7am - 10pm. If you have a postal vote but have not yet posted it, you can hand it in at a polling station.
If you have problems getting to a polling station or need a lift please call 0118 962 9501.