Minutes - draft

These minutes are draft and are to be agreed.

Minutes of the Strategic and Operational Policing Committee of the Metropolitan Police Authority held on 13 May 2010 at 10 Dean Farrar Street, London SW1H 0NY.

Present

Members

• Reshard Auladin (Chairman)
• Jennette Arnold
• Chris Boothman
• Cindy Butts
• Toby Harris
• Joanne McCartney
• Tony Arbour
• Richard Tracey
• Jenny Jones

MPA officers

• Catherine Crawford (Chief Executive)
• Jane Harwood (Deputy Chief Executive)
• Bob Atkins (Treasurer)

MPS officers

• Tim Godwin
• Anne McMeel
• Alisa Beaton
• Lynne Owens
• Clive Chalk
• Richard Clarke
• Darren Williams
• John Whitaker
• Keith Surtees
• Stephanie Day

139. Apologies for absence

(Agenda item 1)

139.1 Apologies were received from Caroline Pidgeon.

140. Declarations of interest

(Agenda item 2)

140.1 None

141. Minutes of the Strategic and Operational Policing Committee 1 April 2010

(Agenda item 3)

141.1 The minutes of the meeting on 1 April 2010 were agreed.

Resolved

That the minutes of the meeting held on 1 April 2010 were approved and signed as a correct record.

142. Urgent actions and urgent operational issues

(Agenda item 4)

142.1 None received.

143. Headline Performance Report

(Agenda item 5)

143.1 The MPS provided a short summary of the key issues arising out of the headline performance report. Members sought clarity on what constituted a ‘dynamic response in regard to knife crime’. They were told that dealing with local schools to inform youngsters of the dangers of carrying and using knives was a key tool in the reduction of knife crime.

143.2 Members were interested to know whether stop and search was an effective tool and whether there were any race and equality implications in regard to knife crime. The MPS said that more BME victims live in the communities affected by the knife crime, so searches on BME citizens will increase due to the areas the crimes occur in. The MPS also said that there was a drop in stop and search because of pressure from communities. There is a concern however that young people think they can carry knives more prevalently because stop and searches activity has reduced.

143.3 The MPA also asked why Merton was the worst borough for knife crime. The MPS stated that in the last four weeks, knife crime had decreased in boroughs across London, including Merton.

143.4 The MPA went on to ask why Southwark had the most stop and searches of all the boroughs. In reply, the MPS stated that Southwark and Newham use stop and search more than others and that there was a correlation between stop and search reduction and an increase in knife crime.

143.5 The MPA followed this by establishing that if stop and search is reduced it would lead to an increase of knife crime. It was noted that it is definitely a factor in the increase, also getting a group of colleges/secondary schools together to educate against use of knives would help, but this has not been drawn together in Southwark as of yet but was in being worked upon.

143.6 The MPA expressed concerns about the impact of new communities on established BME communities. It was noted that Ealing has challenges with its Somali community and there are issues in Waltham Forest with the Eastern European community. The MPS is aiming to refresh the plans in the Blunt boroughs as a result of these emerging trends.

143.7 The MPA asked if the increase in knife crime was spread across all types or is whether it remains focused on youth or domestic violence. Members were told that robbery involving knives was on the rise both by older robbers and in youth robbery related to gangs. Also there is an increase in knife crime in youth gang culture, usually from carried on from school. Many objects can count as “knives” for the purpose of the law, to give an example, during a fight recently, a bucket got broken during a fight and the piece was used as a weapon.

143.8 The MPA questioned the increase in serious sexual offences in London and sought clarity on whether extra resources to help with the increase were being provided. Members were told that resources had been reprioritised within SCD. If further resources are required a paper will be brought back to this committee. Members noted that TP needed to focus on working with partners to combat the increase in this crime type.

143.9 In relation to Operation Bumblebee, the report indicates that 1 out of 10 stop and searches resulted in arrests but in Croydon the figure was 1 in 5. Members were interested to know why the borough was performing so well. It was noted that Croydon had a good briefing system.

143.10 The MPA asked about overtime reduction, asking whether the SOP could commission a report on this. The Chair stated that police overtime is regularly monitored by finance and resources committee. The MPS reassured the MPA by saying that overtime budgets had been reduced this year

143.11 Members indicated their concerns with the first sentence of the race and equality implications, suggesting it would be better left out. They were also interested to know why sickness levels for police officers and police staff are different. The MPA Chief Executive said that there is an ongoing rationalisation to make an equal target for both officers and staff.

Resolved

That the report be noted.

144. HMIC inspection of Barking and Dagenham BOCU

(Agenda item 6)

144.1 The MPS introduced the item by saying that it had a challenging performance year. The recommendations in the HMIC report were right and deliverable action plans have been agreed. They noted that there is a ‘contract’ between HMIC and the borough on delivering the recommendations.

144.2 The MPA noted that HMIC had highlighted the presence of the BNP in the borough and their impact on the local community. There should be an improvement as a result of the local elections.

144.3 There was a brief discussion about the area commander structure and the reduction in numbers. The MPA sought assurances that there would be 5 link commanders still, plus Westminster and that this structure would be more effective than its predecessor. The MPS confirmed that this was the intention.

144.4 The discussion concluded with the MPS outlining the need for a better system focused on victims needs.

Resolved

That the report be noted.

145. Policing civil orders

(Agenda item 7)

145.1 The MPS, beginning the outline of the paper, reported that while there were gaps in the data, white males are over represented in receiving Policing Civil Orders. Civil Orders made it significantly easier for the MPS to monitor compliance, similar to the governance of registered sex offenders.

145.2 The MPA asked why the figures in terms of the race and equality impact hadn’t been recorded. Lack of resources was identified as the problem. This has now been rectified.

145.3 The MPA highlighted paragraph 6, 8 and 9. It reaffirmed that Safer Neighbourhood Teams (SNTs) are briefed on Registered Sex Offenders (RSOs) in their own area, and wanted to know whether SNTs got told about Policing Civil Order injunctions place in their area. Members were told that SNTs did get briefed when the MPS is aware an Order has been given – this is not always the case.

145.4 Members asked whether it was likely in the future that charges would be levied for civil orders. The MPS said this was possible particularly for proceedings in for civil courts. Members asked whether the MPA had made any representations on this issue. The Chair was unaware of any but would follow-up with the MPA chief executive.

145.5 In respect of ASBOs, the MPS informed the committee that ASBOs are usually served on the back of a criminal conviction rather than through the civil court. They went on to say that this was not going to diminish MPS abilities in London.

145.6 That MPA expressed concerns over ASBO and their potential to criminalise individuals. They were interested to know whether the number of ASBOs across London was stable. The MPS stated that it didn’t know whether the numbers were falling but could find out if the MPA wished.

145.7 Members suggested that arrests and breaches were high. In reply the MPS said that some people react well to ASBOs and the process helps them mitigate their behaviour. However, it is less successful with others. The MPS added that ASBOs are one of the only routes to control domestic violence for example.

145.8 The MPS stated that it was on target to deliver the analysis of diversity on ASBOs by the summer 2010.

145.9 The MPA enquired how the MPS ensured the consistency of approach by individual boroughs and were concerned about the risks associated with inconsistency.

145.10 The MPS said that a lack of specific guidance in on some orders made decisions harder. When specific guidance is available, performance will be good.

Resolved

That the report be noted.

146. Update on Joint Engagement Meetings (JEMs)

(Agenda item 8)

146.1 The MPA stated undertaken a JEM with all 32 boroughs with good results. The process was nominated for an APA award and HMIC is highlighting the work as good practice across the country. it was noted that the meetings were useful but in future it would like to improve member engagement before the meetings.

146.2 The MPA brought the committee’s attention to paragraph 14 and the issues raised therein. In the bus stops and school related issues, Transport for London has not followed up what had been agreed at the JEM.

146.3 It was noted that the information packs would be going to the chair of the meeting at the same time as members. In future, they will be more focused on individual boroughs, and the aim is send out a list of actions to link members following the meeting, so when they meet the borough commanders these can be discussed.

146.4 Members were concerned that the process and its outcomes needed to be value for money. They are resource intensive for the police and other partners. There was also a potential for duplication with other MPA boards e.g. the Domestic and Sexual Violence Board.

146.5 Members note the steps being taken to learn from the process and would like better link member engagement. The MPS noted that the process was resource intensive for their officers.

Resolved

That the report be noted.

147. Framework agreement for the provision of boarding services for seized dogs

(Agenda item 9)

147.1 The MPS began by stating that this report was seeking Members’ approval of a framework for the kennelling of dangerous dogs. It was noted that that there was an increasing trend in London of individuals and gangs using dogs as weapons of the streets. The MPS continued by saying that it used to kennel 30-35 dangerous dogs but this had increased over three years to the current situation which was that approximately 400 spaces were needed at any one time. The MPS requested that Members agreed to award a 4 year contract worth up to £10 million to enable them to cope with the increased activity. The MPS noted that last year it set up the status dogs unit to concentrate on this area of activity, and it has achieved considerable successful. DEFRA and the Justin Clarke Society have helped compile information on how to deal with the dangerous dogs. The MPS also advised the committee that it had worked to lower the average time that the dogs are kept in kennels, bringing it down from 120 days to 70. The MPS added that it had worked with partners to reduce the blockages in processing the dangerous dogs.

147.2 The MPA addressed its first question to the MPS asking why the dangerous dogs get kennelled for so long and what would the implication of “putting them down” be? They also asked it would be cost effective for the MPS to build its own kennels. Members were concerned that 70 days was a long time to keep a dog in a kennel and asked whether this was distressing for the animals.

147.3 The MPS replied to the MPA questions by saying that destroying these dogs quickly at the present time would count as criminal offence (destruction of property), the RSPCA also would likely try and prosecute. The reason the dogs get kept for 70 days is due to the timeliness of the criminal justice system – arranging court dates etc. Furthermore the dog must be kept if there is an appeal, legislation therefore causes a massive delay.

147.4 The MPA said that it had seen reports of CO19 Tasering and shooting dangerous dogs and had the RSPCA taken these officers to court?

147.5 The MPS stated that the issue in the main is the animal’s welfare, the mental state of the dogs. They added that it costs up to £9000 to keep the dogs in custody.

147.6 The MPA asked what cost recovery was gained back from the courts for the time period in which the dogs were kept.

147.7 The MPS replied to this saying that costs could only be claimed back between appeals and when appeal fails. It stated that it also paid for the orders, which costs £200 for each application. It added that The Dangerous Dogs Act is currently being rewritten which takes in the 3 constituent acts, which removes the necessity to seize a dog mandatorily. The MPS also voiced a concern, which was that the dogs can’t all be dealt with in one Magistrates court, which meant that the MPS had to travel to various courts across London to get dogs dealt with.

147.8 The MPA stated that a change to this system needs to be made, especially when considering the amount each dog costs to keep at the expense of public funding.

147.9 The MPA requested that Kit Malthouse on behalf of the MPA should write a letter to the new Home Secretary to highlight the problems with the legislation.

Resolved

The plan for funding was agreed, with dissension noted from Valerie Brasse.

148. Specialist Operations Thematic Performance Report – open

(Agenda item 10)

148.1 The MPS introduced this report by saying that counter terrorism is top of activities that the MPS do well. The work of SO1 is highlighted in the report. This includes protecting British VIPs on visits to warzones, the upcoming hockey world cup in Delhi and recent general election. The MPS continued saying it had captured all of the learning from these events, applying it into ensuring that the 2012 Olympic Games are safe.

148.2 Members discussed personal protection, noting that although the MPA/S receive direct grant for this, it may not be sufficient to cover the expanding role.

148.3 The MPA asked whether anything was being done to ensure there are more BME protection officers. The MPS said that they were trying to improve the race and gender balance in the unit, but found that find that the barriers are often gender based. SO is proactive about holding focus groups and SO board, policy challenge panels are also common place now.

148.4 The Chair finished by saying that the MPS was trying to improve this area, as the MPA had seen on visits to the SO.

Resolved

That the report be noted.

149. Exclusion of press and public

(Agenda item 11)

149.1 Members agreed to exclude press and public.

Part 2: Summary of exempt items

150. Specialist Operations Thematic Performance Report – exempt

(Agenda item 12)

150.1 Members discussed the appendix which was provided with the SO Thematic Performance Report.

151. MPS response to Stockwell – update report

(Agenda item 13)

151.1 Members discussed the progress in implementing the action plan resulting from the MPA scrutiny and the HMIC inspection carried out in 2008.

152. Appendix 1 for the – framework agreement for the provision of boarding services for seized dogs

(Agenda item 14)

152.1 See Agenda item 9.

153. Settlement of the Traffic Reporting System (TRIS) contractual dispute

(Agenda item 15)

153.1 Members agreed to the MPS request to settle this dispute.

154. Extension of media buying

(Agenda item 16)

154.1 Members approved the extension.

155. Report by the Director of Professional Standards on behalf of the Commissioner

(Agenda item 17)

155.1 Members approved the request for funding.

156. Report by the Director of Professional Standards on behalf of the Commissioner

(Agenda item 18)

156.1 Members approved the request for funding.

157. Exempt additional agenda item - report by the Director of Professional Standards on behalf of the Commissioner

157.1 Members approved the request for funding.

158. Exempt minutes of the meeting on 1 April 2010

(Agenda item 19)

158.1 Members considered the exempt minutes of 1 April 2010 and found them to be accurate.

The meeting finished at 4:10 pm.

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