The middle of the line

The Tories have unveiled their candidate for the Warwickshire Police & Crime Commissioner. It is Fraser Pithie.

There are currently two major issues around crime and policing in the county. First of all the 20% funding cuts from central government have already led to decreasing numbers of officers, affecting community (and beat) policing. In the last year, burglary rates have shot up in Rugby, and it can’t be ruled out that there is a link.

Fraser Pithie supports these cuts, which seem to be leading to more crime.

The second is that the County Council has decided to switch off 80% of street lights between midnight and 5:30am. This will hit residential areas all over the county, particularly in the towns. Whole estates will have no lights on overnight as a result of these plans. As well as being a safety issue (how will people on shift work see to walk home avoiding badly maintained pavements?), it will also increase concerns about crime.

I don’t yet know if Pithie supports sending most of the county into the dark, he hasn’t replied to my tweet asking him yet.

I also looked at his website, and on his profile page is the headline:

He’s Local, has Business experience, Policing knowledge and is not a Politician

I’m not going to dispute the first three. He has lived in the County all his life, he has spent 32 years working in the Water industry, and he’s had a long association with the Police Authority.

but ‘not a Politician‘?

Sorry, but that is utter rubbish. Quite apart from the fact that he is seeking election on the slate of a political party, he’s also in the past been a Parish councillor and a County Councillor. That makes him a politician. While it may be attractive to try to portray oneself as an ‘anti-politics’ candidate, above the fray, it’s also important to be more honest.

So, there you go – he is fine to policing cuts, and he’s disingenuous (at best) about his nature as a politician.