Who says that this Government had no plan? It had one. It just did not let the electorate know what it was. Some of us tried to do that, but why should anyone have listened to us? Still, we were right.
Next up are Shabana Mahmood's reheated 20-year-old changes to the Police, including making the 12 new "mega forces" directly answerable to the Home Secretary. Those would not be able to come into effect until near the end of the next Parliament in 2034, and anyone might be Home Secretary by then. Every Government that I can remember has been keen on empowering its successors, known for the moment as its opponents. Note well Mahmood's desire to bequeath such potency to an appointee of Kemi Badenoch or of Nigel Farage.
There can be no compromise on digital ID, without which a social media ban on under-16s would be impossible, or on facial recognition, or on any of that. There can be no compromise on the right to trial by jury, or on the automatic right of appeal from the Magistrates' Court to the Crown Court. And there can be no compromise on this, yet another huge change that was in no one's manifesto. Just say no.
The government is setting up a National Police Service – dubbed the “British FBI” – to deal with organised crime, terrorism, fraud and online child abuse in a major change to policing in England and Wales.
ReplyDeleteThe new organisation, which will be announced by the Home Office in a white paper on Monday, means fraud, criminal gang and UK-wide counter terror investigations will no longer be carried out by a combination of existing agencies such as the National Crime Agency and regional organised crime units run by local police forces.
The National Police Service (NPS) will instead deploy “world-class talent” and “state-of-the-art technology” to carry out these investigations nationally, enabling local police officers to use more of their resources to crack down on less serious and complex local crimes, such as shoplifting or antisocial behaviour.
All under the Home Secretary. No matter who that may be.
Delete