Over the next several months, in the run up to May 2016, CoPaCC will be providing a range of support for declared and potential PCC candidates. OUR FIRST EVENT WILL BE IN CENTRAL LONDON ON WEDNESDAY, 16th DECEMBER, from 11am to 4pm.
Following CoPaCC’s earlier announcement of a “PCC Candidate Support Programme”, CoPaCC has now provided details of the first five confirmed speakers for our event on December 16th. They are:
- Peter Neyroud. Peter is a Resident Scholar at the Jerry Lee Centre for Experimental Criminology at the University of Cambridge. He played a leading role in the work of the Independent Police Commission established prior to the last General Election by the Labour Party. Previously, he was Chief Executive of the National Policing Improvement Agency and Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police.
- Mark Reckless. Mark trained as a barrister, gaining an LLB from the College of Law and being called to the Bar in 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Rochester and Strood and a former member of the influential Home Affairs Select Committee before leaving the Conservative Party and joining UKIP.
- Bernard Rix. Bernard is Chief Executive of CoPaCC and Publisher of PolicingInsight.com. Before founding CoPaCC shortly after the first PCC elections in November 2012, Bernard worked for over twenty five years as an independent advisor to police forces across the British Isles, Europe and the Middle East.
- Adam Simmonds. Adam is the serving Police and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire. He represents the Conservative Party. Adam has announced that he will not be seeking re-election in the forthcoming PCC elections in May 2016.
- Roy Wilsher. Roy is the Chief Executive for the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner in Hertfordshire. He is also the Chief Fire Officer for Hertfordshire and the Chief Fire Officers’ Association Director for Operations.
CoPaCC intends to announce further speakers and contributors in the very near future.
We are also able to confirm that this event will be hosted by leading police auditors, Grant Thornton, at their Finsbury Square (central London) office. Grant Thornton is one of the world’s leading organisations of independent assurance, tax and advisory firms.
CoPaCC’s in providing this “PCC Candidate Support Programme” is to support the democratic process by providing for a better informed debate. We firmly believe that everyone will benefit as a result, whatever the ultimate outcome at the polls next year. Without the benefit of this type of support network, many prospective candidates might be unable to mount an effective campaign that gets to the heart of the issues affecting our communities. Without the benefit of independent, objective, evidence-based analysis, such as that provided by CoPaCC, commentators and electors will be less well informed on how PCCs have so far performed.
CoPaCC will be doing its utmost over the coming few months to ensure that all those participating in, or commentating on, the PCC elections in May 2016 are well informed.
