Policing and Social Responsibility Bill

Report: 8
Date: 27 January 2011
By: Chief Executive

Summary

The purpose of this report is to provide members with an update on the progress of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill and a brief overview of plans that are being put in place to deliver the implementation of the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and the abolition of the Metropolitan Police Authority.

A. Recommendations

That members note the contents of this report.

B. Supporting information

1. The new Policing and Social Responsibility (PRSR) Bill was introduced to Parliament in December 2010. Whilst the Bill contains a number of proposals, the most significant from the perspective of the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) is the creation of the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC) as a new functional body of the Greater London Authority (GLA), and the abolition of the MPA.

2. The Bill began the committee stage week commencing 17 January. A list of the members of the Bill committee is attached at Appendix 1. A schedule of the sessions to look at the Bill is attached at Appendix 2. The Mayor submitted written evidence to this committee on Friday 14 January.

3. The committee held oral evidence sessions on Tuesday 18 and Thursday 20 January. Those giving evidence were the Association of Police Authorities, the Victims’ Commissioner, the Police Federation of England and Wales, the Professor of Criminology and Director of Criminology at All Souls College, University of Oxford, the Chief Constable of West Midlands Police, the Local Government Association, the Chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, the British Beer and Pub Association, the Metropolitan Police Service, Liberty and the Director of Public Prosecutions. The Chair of the Authority was invited to give evidence, but was unable to attend.

4. Amendments to the Bill have been proposed by each party within the committee and line by line scrutiny of the Bill began on 25 January. MPA officers will watch each session live to track the progress of the Bill and the amendments.

5. The Bill proposes a starting date of May 2012 for the new structures outside London. At this point Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be elected and police authorities will be abolished. In London the timescales may be different; in essence there is already a PCC in the form of the Mayor of London and therefore a MOPC effectively exists. The legislation as currently drafted therefore allows for London to go early, subject to Royal Assent and the relevant commencement orders being laid.

6. It is proposed that the following process will be used to manage the implementation of the MOPC:

6.1 The MPA Business Management Group (BMG), chaired by the MPA Chair, will act as the MOPC implementation programme board. Formal updates will be provided to BMG on a monthly basis. As this is a fast moving programme, additional meetings may be required at critical points in the process or consultation and discussion may be conducted electronically.

6.2 The MPA Senior Management Team (SMT), chaired by the Chief Executive, will own the implementation and drive through the work. To support this it is intended that the SMT will meet on a fortnightly basis with the specific purpose of reviewing progress and taking necessary actions. SMT will be augmented for this purpose with the lead managers in Equalities and Engagement, Communications, Legal Services and HR.

6.3 The following strands have been identified and officers appointed to lead each:

• Legislative change and progression of the Bill
• National landscape
• Relationship management
• Business as usual – Authority business and member support
• Business as usual – statutory functions, national responsibilities etc
• Work planning for the future
• MPA internal infrastructure
• Financial planning and assets
• Shared services
• Organisational design and culture
• Legacy planning
• Consultation with the union
• Programme support and risk management
• HR
• Communications
• Equalities and diversity
• Legal issues
• National PCC support body

6.4 It is intended that the MPA Business Management Team (BMT) will be charged with undertaking significant amounts of this work. This team consists of all the heads of units and it is therefore well placed to ensure business as usual is delivered up until midnight of the change, as well as planning the future.

6.5 Members will be updated regularly and an email round up of significant amendments and additions to the legislation will be circulated the day after each committee debate. The Chair will report on progress as part of the Chairman’s update at each Full Authority meeting and the Bill will be a standing item on each Strategic Operational Policing (SOP) committee meeting agenda from now on.

6.6 All staff meetings will take place on a fortnightly basis supported by other communication channels and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) will be consulted on a routine and regular basis.

6.7 There will be parallel planning work with officers in the MPS and the GLA.

6.8 In planning for the change, the following assumptions have been agreed:

• The MOPC will be created as a new functional body of the GLA
• The MPA will be abolished
• The new structure in London will be implemented on 1 October 2011

6.9 The Home Office has established a Transition Board, chaired by the Minister for Policing. The MPA Chair is a member of that Board as is the MPA Treasurer (reflecting his national role). The intention is that a number of project groups will be established and MPA officers will sit on these groups where appropriate. The Chief Executive has been designated lead for the group looking at the change in London.

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equalities Impact

1. Equality and diversity is a key theme running throughout the programme of work to implement the MOPC. This will be considered in a number of ways. The new MOPC structure must be capable of ensuring legislative requirements are met and that there is effective oversight of MPS service delivery (both internally and externally). In addition the equality and diversity implications of the change to MPA staff must be managed sensitively and professionally, recognising how stressful the change process can be for individuals affected.

Met Forward

2. A further iteration of Met Forward will be developed for consideration by the MOPC.

Financial Implications

3. The cost of MOPC implementation will be determined and accommodated within current financial plans.

Legal Implications

4. Legal implications of the Bill and MOPC implementation will be addressed as a key strand of that programme of work.

Environmental Implications

5. There are no obvious environmental implications to note at this stage.

Risk Implications

6. A full risk register for implementation of the MOPC is being worked up and will be carefully managed as part of the implementation programme.

D. Background papers

None

E. Contact details

Report authors: Catherine Crawford, Chief Executive, MPA

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 1

Members of the PRSR Bill Committee (as at 16/12/10)

Political composition

9 Conservative, 2 Liberal Democrat, 1 Democratic Unionist Party (Northern Ireland), 8 Labour (20 total).

Appendix 2

Schedule of sessions for the committee to look at the PRSR Bill

The Committee will hear oral evidence on Tuesday 18 and Thursday 20 January and then consider the Bill every Tuesday and Thursday from that point concluding on Thursday 17 February.

Oral evidence

Tuesday 18 January in the Boothroyd Room Portcullis House

• 10.30am: The Association of Police Authorities, Independent Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses, the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Police Federation
• 4pm: Rick Muir Institute for Public Policy Research, Chief Constable West Midlands Police and Ian Loader Professor of Criminology and Director of Criminology at All Souls College Oxford University

Thursday 20 January in the Grimond Room Portcullis House

• 9am: The Local Government Association, Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, The Wine and Spirit Trade Association and the British Beer & Pub Association
• 1pm: The Metropolitan Police Service, Liberty and Keir Starmer QC, Director of Public Prosecutions

Line by line scrutiny of the Bill

Committee Room 9, Palace of Westminster

• Tuesday 25 January 10.30am and 4.00pm
• Thursday 27 January 9.00am and 1.00pm
• Tuesday 01 February 10.30am and 4.00pm
• Thursday 03 February 9.00am and 1.00pm
• Tuesday 08 February 10.30am and 4.00pm
• Thursday 10 February 9.00am and 1.00pm
• Tuesday 15 February 10.30am and 4.00pm
• Thursday 17 February 9.00am and 1.00pm

The committee must complete consideration of the Bill no later than 5pm on Thursday 17 February.

These sessions will be open to the public on a first come, first served basis. There is no system for the prior reservation of seats in Committee Rooms.

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