MPA Retrospective

Report: 8
Date: 12 January 2012
By: Chief Executive

Summary

This report summarises the achievements of the Metropolitan Police Authority during the current administration.

A. Recommendations

That Members note and comment on the contents of the report.

B. Supporting information

1. The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 abolishes the MPA and establishes the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime, which will take place on 16 January 2012. The MPA was set up in July 2000 under the provisions of the Greater London Authority Act 1999. The work of its members, both individually and collectively through the committee structure leaves a significant legacy. An overview of MPS performance since the creation of the MPA is contained at Appendix 1.

2. In April 2009, the first ever police authority strategy for a police service was developed by the MPA, Met Forward. This fundamentally changed the work of the Authority, focusing all oversight and scrutiny activity towards the key priorities set for the MPS. Met Forward was highlighted as good practice by both Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) and the Audit Commission.

Policing policy development

3. The MPA has undertaken a significant and successful programme of scrutinies. These have included a scrutiny and review of the effectiveness of the Safer Neighbourhoods team model.

4. A review of the MPS response to the G20 protests and public order policing was undertaken by the Civil Liberties Panel (CLP) and resulted in a number of recommendations that the MPS took on board. The CLP also reviewed the National DNA Database (NDNAD) and the use of DNA in policing panel and made a number of recommendations concerning DNA handling and communication.

5. The Authority implemented a public protection oversight programme in 2009/10 and produced London’s first Violence Against Women Annual Report jointly with the MPS.

6. The MPA has monitored MPS performance and planning, including the policing plans for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. Reports to the committee have covered everything from the business case to increase the numbers of dogs trained to seek out explosives, to the arrangements being put in place to ensure there are appropriate muster and deployment facilities across London. Site visits to the Olympic Park and National Olympic Co-ordination Centre and meetings with community stakeholders from the five boroughs surrounding the Park and key security and safety stakeholders have enabled the Authority to understand the totality of arrangements that are being put in place and ensure that these will deliver a safe and secure Olympics.

7. The Race and Faith Inquiry report, published in July 2010, was a significant piece of work for the Authority. It was commissioned by the Mayor of London to explore race and faith issues within the MPS in relation to recruitment and progression of BME staff and police officers. The Authority has since progressed significant work on multi-point entry, including a national symposium held in January 2011 and ongoing joint meetings with the MPS and the Home Office to support the development of a pilot scheme. As a result of the Inquiry, the MPS has developed a new organisational learning team to identify and disseminate good practice and a new personal development review process to ensure sufficient focus on staff development.

8. The Authority has been particularly successful in representing the interests of Londoners at the Police Negotiating Board and Police Advisory Board, lobbying for a modern approach to employee relations activities within the police service and the need to recognise the particular challenges faced by policing the capital city. This has included lobbying the successive Home Secretaries on behalf of the Met. For example, the Neyroud Review contains a number of proposals and recommendations including the creation of a chartered professional body for policing that would set standards and ensure accreditation of these, a new delivery body for police leadership and training and a new qualifications framework for policing. The MOPC has sought involvement in the implementation of the report and a seat on the professional body for the Service.

Boards and partnerships

9. The MPA has set up several Boards to facilitate policing and crime reduction activities in the capital, including the Domestic and Serious Sexual Violence Board and Race and Hate Crime forum. The Mayor chaired the first London Crime Reduction Board meeting in September 2010. The Board has enabled the MPA to drive forward crime reduction programmes that require effective collaboration between London’s 32 boroughs, the MPS and criminal justice partners. The programmes include work to address youth violence, gangs and violence against women and to reduce re-offending. In a context of localism, the Board has helped to inform priorities, improve data sharing and preserve local community safety budgets, for example safeguarding women’s refuge provision.

10. Joint Engagement Meetings (JEMs), chaired by Kit Malthouse, were developed by the MPA in 2008 as a mechanism to facilitate engagement and joint problem solving work around crime and safety issues between the police, local authorities and other partner agencies at a borough level. JEMs are now in the third round and the process has successfully supported wide-ranging service improvement across London.

Community Engagement

11. The Authority has successfully delivered community engagement activity, with the support of Community Police Engagement Groups (CPEGs). A series of ‘roadshows’ were held jointly by the MPA and GLA in 2010/11 to inform borough stakeholders about the work being done to address violent crime and to hear suggestions about further ways to tackle the issue. These will be continued by the MOPC with a series of ‘symposiums’ in early 2012.

12. This year the Authority delivered a significant consultation exercise on the withdrawal of the recording of stop and account which resulted in the MPS committing to retaining recording. This demonstrates how the community voice can positively influence decision-making in policing London. In addition, both City of London and British Transport Police have followed our lead and will retain the recording of stop and account.

13. The MPA has continued to develop its relationship with London’s communities through its work with volunteers on both the Independent Custody Visiting Scheme (ICVS) and the Community and Police Engagement Groups (CPEGs).

14. There are now more than 400 custody visitors in the ICV scheme, which has been running since the beginning of the MPA and has been statutory since 2002. ICVs are volunteer members of the community who make unannounced visits to those held in police custody. Overall performance in terms of the number of visits conducted, how effectively issues arising out of visits are addressed, how effectively the panel communicates with the local community about the scheme and how effectively the MPA recruits to the scheme, has consistently improved over time. Alongside better training for custody staff, the introduction of CCTV in police cells and the direct relationship between the MPS Custody Directorate and the MPA, custody visiting has played an important part in reassuring communities that those who find themselves in police custody are, on the whole, treated well. Operating from borough based panels across the whole of London the MPA ICV Scheme is by far the largest in the UK and is described by the national association of ICV schemes as containing some of the most knowledgeable and professional ICVs in the country.

15. In relation to CPEGs, there has been considerable development in the management of CPEG delivery and in the diversity of the membership of CPEGs across London, particularly in terms of increased involvement of young people in some boroughs. These relationships will continue into MOPC to ensure that the progress that has been made so far will be sustained.

Securing value for money

16. The Authority has been instrumental in driving efficiency savings to meet the significant budget gap of recent years, securing £146.2million in pre–planned efficiency savings in 2009/10 and £113 million in 2010/11. The MPA has overseen the development of the annual policing plan through an increasingly difficult financial climate and through regular planning and budget scrutinies and meetings, has ensured that a policing plan is developed with appropriate priorities and objectives and with a suitable budget to deliver them.

17. Scrutiny and challenge by the MPA has, through improved processes put in place by the MPS, resulted in a marked improvement in the performance of the capital programme and a reduction in overtime, with forecast expenditure for 2011/12 (excluding the impact of the costs arising from the policing response to recent public disorder within London), seeing a reduction of £46M (25%) in overtime since 2008/09.

Governance and audit

18. The MPA’s Directorate of Audit, Risk and Assurance has delivered a highly regarded programme of internal audits and the Authority has worked to ensure an increased rate of implementation of recommendations. Particularly notable work of the Authority in this area includes overseeing improvements to the management and control of the business charge card system following the AMEX card investigation and implementation of KPMG’s recommendations on treasury management made as a result of the collapse of the Icelandic banks. The MPA has developed an effective anti fraud strategy and implementation plan and the MPA’s fraud risk analysis is being promoted as an area of best practice by the National Fraud Authority.

19. The MPA has supported development of the MPS corporate governance framework, including implementation of the developing resource management programme, reviewing all forms of public consultation, reviewing the MPS Environment Strategy and developing the Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy.

Human Resources

20. The Authority has, since April 2008, appointed three Deputy Commissioners, 12 Assistant Commissioners, 23 Deputy Assistant Commissioners, and 63 Commanders. The Authority has made recommendations to the Home Secretary on the appointment of three Commissioners.

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equality and Diversity Impact

1. The MPA has developed a robust equality impact assessment process for all reports and policies.

Financial Implications

2. The Finance and Resources Committee has considered the budget alongside the police plan annually. It has also considered the financial implications of delivering significant change programmes within the MPS e.g. TP development. The committee has also taken a keen interest in productivity and ensuring that policing in London is delivered efficiently and effectively.

Legal Implications

3. Where appropriate the MPA has considered legal implications. This has been particularly true in respect of the decisions the committee has made in respect of requests for funding and riot damages act claims.

Environmental Implications

4. Where appropriate, the MPA has considered environmental implications.

Risk Considerations

5. Where appropriate, the MPA has considered risk issues arising out of the reports it has scrutinised.

D. Background papers

None

E. Contact details

Report authors: Sarah Easey, Chief of Staff, MPA

For more information contact:

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

Appendix 1

MPA/MPS performance overview: 2000-2011

Crime in London (TNOs) for the 12 months to November 2011 has fallen by almost a fifth compared to 1999. In the same period the number of people caught and brought before the courts by the police has risen by 18%.

There are 16% fewer homicides now than there were in 1999 when there were 146. Homicides rose to 222 in 2003 but in the year to November that total had fallen to 122. The number of homicides - currently the lowest since 1999 - are around a quarter of the number in New York.

Recorded assaults where the victim has been injured (violence with injury) have declined by over a fifth (23%) in the year to November 2011 compared to 2006, the earliest year for which comparable data is available.

Londoners put house break-ins and vehicle crime in their top three local crime and disorder issues. In the year to November 2011 there were 18% fewer burglaries of people’s homes than in 1999. Londoners’ other top priority is tackling speeding and dangerous driving. In the year to August 2011 just under 2,500 people were killed or seriously injured on London’s roads which means there were 3,386 fewer serious casualties than in 1999. Within the reduction in road casualties was a decrease in fatalities from 261 in 1999 to 151 in the year to November 2011. The fall in casualties is a reflection of the effectiveness of the MPS enforcement tactics and the prevention work by the MPS and partners.

Motorists are suffering substantially less crime than in 1999, with theft of their vehicles more than halved (down 56%) since then. London had 27,361 of those offences in the year to November 2011, down from 61,711 in 1999. Theft from vehicles came down a third (34%) in the same period.

In the past decade robberies reached their highest level in 2001, and are now 23% lower, representing over 12,000 fewer victims a year. Although robbery and knife crime are sometimes seen as synonymous, in fact approaching three out of four robberies do not involve a knife and victims are injured with knives in less than 2% of robbery offences.

The disorder in early August was a very challenging time for the MPS. There has been no significant disorder since 9th August and the Notting Hill Carnival took place with crime levels and arrests below those for previous years. The MPS has worked hard and is continuing to work hard to bring those responsible for criminal acts to justice. As of 22nd December there have been 3,443 arrests and 2,172 charges related to the August disorder.

Londoners have recognised the MPS’ success in tackling crime in their city during the past decade. Two thirds (66%) now say their local police are doing a good job, up from 58% in 2006.

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