Why does the Home Office think that having the information about candidates for the Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) elections on Thursday 15 November should only be available after October 26th? Isn't that getting a bit late in the day? It's certainly too late for village newsletters like Burton News, which are published monthly, to carry it in their November issue.
Also, today is the first that I've heard an advert on local radio (Lakeland Radio) about these elections. The information is online, but not everyone has access to the internet still or wants it in that format, but if you want printed info you have to ring up and ask for it. (You can phone now on 0800 107 0708 and pre-order a printed copy.) Which begs the question, if you don't hear or read an advert telling you this, how would you know that you can ask for it?!
The election of Police & Crime Commissioners is the biggest change in the way police forces are managed for decades and yet it's being carried out in a less than voter-friendly manner. An election taking place in November seems destined to attract a low turn-out - dark nights are never an encouragement for voters to turn out, and the Electoral Reform Society is predicting a turn-out of around 18.5% as against a more usual 60%+ for a general election. How is this democratic? How will the person elected reflect the electorate with such a low turn-out?
In Cumbria there are 4 candidates standing. Whichever of them gets the most votes, it still means that the most powerful person in policing in Cumbria would have been elected by a minority of the electorate.
The PCC will have the power to set out the crime plan for the county, set the budget and precept for the county police force, and hire and fire the chief constable and the deputy chief constable. These are huge powers, and they should be in the hands of (preferably) a non-political elected police authority or of a commissioner who is elected by a majority of the electorate, not just by the votes of the few who realise how important these elections really are.
http://www.choosemypcc.org.uk/ Home Office website about the Police & Crime Commissioner elections
List of candidates standing in Cumbria: http://www.southlakeland.gov.uk/pdf/SPN%20-%20PCC.pdf (PDF file)
The Polling Station for Burton-in-Kendal is Burton Memorial Hall, polling hours are 7am - 10pm.
Blogging about what goes on in the village of Burton-in-Kendal, Cumbria
