Shadow Counsel General and North Wales MS Mark Isherwood has today asked the Welsh Government why it is “devoting so much time and resource to devolution of Policing to Wales, when it is cutting key budgets elsewhere”.
Speaking in the Welsh Parliament during today’s Spokespersons Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution, Mr Isherwood pointed out that both the UK Conservative Government and the most senior Welsh Labour MP in Westminster, Shadow Welsh Secretary Jo Stephens, have rejected fresh calls for the Welsh Government to be given control of policing and adult criminal justice.
He was therefore keen to know why Ministers in Cardiff Bay are investing so much time and effort into pursuing devolution in these areas.
Addressing the Counsel General, he said:
“Calling for devolution of Policing to Wales, both you and the First Minister have referred to the devolution of policing to Manchester as a model for Wales, but those are only the powers of Police and Crime Commissioners, and we already have devolution to them in Wales.
“For clarity, what are you therefore proposing – retention of the current Regional Police and Crime Commissioner Model, Centralisation of the powers of a Police and Crime Commissioner in a National person or Body, or re-centralisation of powers in a Welsh Government Department?
“Further, are you proposing that this should apply to a single Welsh Police Force, against the detailed recommendations of the Committee of Assembly Members, including myself, appointed to consider this during previous Senedd terms, when the then Labour Home Secretary accepted and implemented our recommendations?”
He added:
“The ‘Delivering Justice for Wales: 2024 progress report’ states that: ‘the Thomas Commission concluded in 2019 that the design and delivery of justice policy should be devolved to Wales’.
“However, the Welsh Government is yet to explain why the Thomas Commission Report only makes one reference to cross-border criminality, despite the North-West Regional Organised Crime Unit, which includes North Wales, having told me that evidence given regarding this to the Thomas Commission was largely ignored in the Commission's Report.
“Unlike Scotland and Northern Ireland, Wales has a heavily populated cross border area (with England), with an estimated 95% or more of crime in North Wales operating on a cross-border East/West basis and almost none on an all-Wales basis
“Why, therefore is the Welsh Government devoting so much time and resource to devolution of Policing to Wales, when it is cutting key budgets elsewhere – especially when both the UK Conservative Government and the most senior Welsh Labour MP in Westminster, Shadow Welsh Secretary Jo Stephens, have rejected fresh calls for the Welsh Government to be given control of policing and adult criminal justice?”
Mr Isherwood also criticised the progress report, which the Counsel General released jointly with the Social Justice Minister, “for failing to mention actions taken by the Welsh Government which will have a direct negative impact on the Justice System in Wales, such as withdrawing funding for the Wales Police Schools Programme – SchoolBeat, a collaboration with the four Police Forces in Wales for ages 5 – 16”.
He asked the Counsel General:
“How do you justify cutting a programme that is designed to prevent, rather than cure, whilst delivering a saving to the Public Purse?”