• Taskforce for joined-up approach based on best practice: From educating our children to raise awareness, to treating victims in the best way, to punishing offenders and protecting victims, we need to make sure our approach is joined up and based on best practice across the board. So I will establish a taskforce to bring together schools, health services, the prosecution service and the police, to look at treatment of VAWG.
• Education in rehabilitation: For the people that are convicted of domestic abuse, we need to ensure that they are not only punished, but go through rehabilitation so that they understand the impact of domestic abuse and do not fall into a cycle of re-offending. I will work with Government and neighbouring police forces to make sure that we are running the most effective, efficient rehabilitation programmes.
• Domestic violence disclosure scheme: The Government is piloting a domestic violence disclosure scheme, so that the police share more information about domestic violence offenders. I will work with the police authorities that are running these to monitor how these pilots develop.
• Domestic violence protection orders: The Government is piloting a scheme to give victims temporary protection of up to 28 days in the aftermath of an attack. I will work with Government and police authorities to see how this pilot progresses.
• Audit of service provision: The Government is making funding available for local authorities to identify gaps in their service provision for VAWG. I will conduct an audit into our service provision, to ensure that we are providing a complete, comprehensive service.

Katy commented:

“As Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex, I will prioritise violence against women and girls. We need to educate everyone about this issue, we need to protect vulnerable women and girls, and we need to provide the services that victims need. Educate, protect, provide. This is my pledge.”

Conservative candidate Katy Bourne has today
Conservative candidate Katy Bourne has today set out her vision for

Under the new Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 it will be an offence to clamp, tow, block in or immobilise a vehicle without lawful authority on private land. This will stop abuses by rogue firms who charge motorists excessive release fees.

If clampers break the law, they could be liable to an unlimited fine in the Crown Court or up to £5,000 in a Magistrates Court.
The ban will not change existing lawful authority, such as traffic enforcement by local authorities and police on highways, but will effectively ban clamping on private land. The ban also applies to towing away and blocking in. Anyone who clamps a vehicle or tows it away on private land without specific lawful authority to do so may face criminal proceedings.

These changes were all inspired by members of the public through a cross-government survey, ‘Your Freedom’. People had the chance to suggest ideas on restoring liberties that have been lost, repealing unnecessary laws and stripping away excessive regulation.

Local PCC candidate Katy Bourne said: ‘Many people in Sussex have suffered at the hands of rogue clampers. In the past, these firms have been allowed a free rein and honest motorists have been the ones to suffer. Now, thanks to this common sense ban from the Conservatives, motorists will have the protection they need.’

Conservative Home Office Minister Lord Taylor of Holbeach said: “This will save motorists £55 million each year in clamping charges and finally penalise the real criminals – the corrupt firms themselves.”

Commenting Katy said:

We need our police officers to be crime fighters, not form fillers. There is too much red
tape tying up our PCs and Sergeants and preventing them from being the visible policing
presence which I know people in Sussex want them to be.

As a case goes through the Criminal Justice System there can be an unbelievable amount
of paperwork – it often takes 70 forms to be completed to deal with a simple burglary.

That’s why I will make cutting the red tape a top priority if elected. The Government is doing
good things from the top, making changes to free up police time. But we also need a strong
local figure here in Sussex who can put Sussex Police under the magnifying glass and see
what is getting in the way of good policing. That is what I will do.

Home Secretary Theresa May MP said:

We’ve made changes that, if fully implemented by every force in England and Wales, could
save up to 4.5 million police hours every year. That’s the equivalent of getting over 2,100
police officers away from paperwork and back on the street.

Katy, who hopes to be the county’s first commissioner after elections in November, is carrying out a series of public meetings and walkabouts to ensure she can meet as many residents as possible over the coming weeks.

The Mid Sussex District Councillor was with Hastings and Rye MP Amber Rudd for a tour around Hastings town centre on Saturday morning. She later joined stall holders for the afternoon at Haywards Heath Town Day, close to the home she shares with her husband and grown up sons in nearby Ansty.

Other events include:

• Saturday 15 September – Horsham – a walkabout in the town centre with MP Francis Maude between 10am and 3pm.
• Tuesday 18 September – East Grinstead – a public meeting at the Town Hall between 7pm and 8.30pm.
• Tuesday 25 September – Billingshurst – a public meeting at the Community and Conference Centre in Roman Way between 7pm and 8.30pm.
• Tuesday 2 October – Rye – a public meeting at Rye Community Centre in Conduit Hill, between 7pm and 8.30pm.
• Friday 5 October – Chichester – meeting customers at the Farmers Market in the city centre between 9am and 3pm.

Further opportunities to talk to Katy will be announced over the coming weeks.

Katy said:

The meetings I’ve had so far have been invaluable in helping me to understand how people view crime and policing in their local areas. I’m really looking forward to seeing as many residents as possible in the run up to the elections in November.

The role of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has been introduced to bring democratic accountability to England’s policing.

The PCC will replace the existing police authority and has a larger remit, which includes community safety and crime prevention. All residents on the electoral roll can vote for their chosen candidate for this key position on November 15 and Katy has been selected to represent the Conservative Party in Sussex.

Katy said:

My absolute priority is to ensure we are all ‘Safer in Sussex’ by cutting crime and catching more criminals. I intend to put victims back at the heart of the Criminal Justice System, tackle anti-social behaviour and domestic violence, and ensure residents can see value for money from our police force.

I want visible and effective policing in every neighbourhood, so meeting residents to hear their views is vital.

Katy’s nomination has been warmly welcomed. Hastings and Rye MP Amber Rudd said:

I am confident that Katy will make an excellent Police and Crime Commissioner and will be a strong voice for Sussex. It is important that residents across Sussex take part in the election on the 15th November. The Government has given these important powers to a directly accountable public figure so it is in everyone’s interest to have their say on the direction and future of crime prevention in Sussex.

Mike Weatherley MP for Hove & Portslade said:

Katy’s dynamic approach, extensive broad experience and tenacious drive will make her a formidable champion for the people of Sussex

The Police ICT Company is currently jointly owned by the Association of Police Authorities and the Home Office but will be handed over to police and crime commissioners following elections in November.

The company has been created to get better value for money for forces by offering access to better services and deals.

It is part of a programme of reforms led by Conservatives in government to get better value for money and to ensure that resources can be diverted to the front line.

Local Conservative candidate Katy Bourne said:

Computers and IT are vital tools for fighting crime in the twenty-first century and I want Sussex to have the best. But in the past we have spent far too much on software and programmes.

This new company will allow Police and Crime Commissioners to work together to get the best deal. This will save money and allow resources to be directed to the front-line. It will also free up senior officers’ time and mean more innovation so that officers can spend more time on the beat.

Nick Herbert, Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, said:

While some police IT is good, such as the new Police National Database, much of it is not.  There are 2,000 systems between the 43 forces of England and Wales, and individual forces have not always driven the most effective deals.

We need a new, more collaborative approach and greater accountability, utilising expertise in IT procurement and freeing police officers to focus on fighting crime.

By harnessing the purchasing power of police forces, the new company will be able to drive down costs, save taxpayers money, and help to improve police and potentially wider criminal justice IT systems in future.

Nick Herbert
Daily Telegraph, 12 July 2012, link.

It is a basic principle of justice that it should be delivered without delay. Magna Carta asserted that “to no one will we refuse or delay right or justice”. Justice delayed is indeed justice denied, especially to the victims of crime.
Yet our justice system routinely tolerates delay. On average, almost five months elapse between offence and sentence being passed in a magistrates’ court. Complex cases understandably take time to prepare. But the large majority are relatively minor, or even uncontested. There’s no reason why they can’t be dealt with more quickly.

A year ago, in response to the riots, this is precisely what happened. Police, prosecutors and courts worked together – and offenders were brought to justice within days, sometimes even hours. The speed and certainty of the system’s response sent a powerful message to offenders and the public alike. Afterwards, the Prime Minister rightly asked why this approach could not be the norm. So today I am launching a White Paper that sets out the clearest ambition: that justice should routinely be swift and sure.
We need to start by asking why the wheels of justice grind so slowly. One study of magistrates’ courts showed that cases took an average of 15 weeks from start to finish, yet involved only six hours of actual work. Fewer than half of all trials go ahead on the scheduled date. What would happen if airlines were run like that?

We need not only to improve the management of cases, but to challenge the system’s culture. Too many cases are prepared for trials that never happen, or go to crown court unnecessarily. Procedures can be changed without compromising the right to jury trial – for example, courts are already saving weeks of time by discouraging last-minute guilty pleas.

Last year, I met a police officer who had to waste time photocopying files for court. While the rest of the world has embraced email, criminal justice has retained an archaic love of paper. Now, however, evidence is being sent by digital file, and every crown prosecutor has access to a tablet device to present cases in court. Similarly, the police can waste hours hanging around courts. So we’ve begun to enable officers to give evidence from their stations by video link, freeing them up for other duties until the case is heard.
After the riots, the chairman of the Magistrates’ Association suggested that courts could open for longer, including evenings and weekends. So we’re piloting flexible sittings. There’s been some criticism from lawyers, but justice should be administered in the public interest, not for the convenience of professionals.

Justice should also be sure. Those tried after the riots had already committed an average of 11 crimes each – 20,000 offences in total. We need to grip offenders from the earliest point, setting clear boundaries and dealing with their underlying problems before they
slide into ever more serious criminality. Effective programmes to address offenders’ mental health and addiction problems are important. But so is the certainty that offending will always have consequences. When criminals fail to pay fines or to turn up for unpaid work, not only is public confidence undermined, but they are sent entirely the wrong signal.

So as well as making community sentences more robust, and toughening up the enforcement of fines, we are introducing Neighbourhood Justice Panels across the country, where low-level offenders will make amends to their victims and repair the damage.
Labour’s idea of summary justice was to set targets that encouraged police officers to issue penalty notices. Punishments such as cautions can be useful with minor offending, enabling the police to exercise their discretion. But on-the-spot fines and cautions must also be appropriate. They have sometimes been used wrongly, for instance when repeat offenders aren’t sent to court. In the process, magistrates have felt marginalised – yet they have a historic role in community justice that should be greatly valued. Now, magistrates will scrutinise the use of out-of-court disposals, and police officers will apply a new “justice test” when considering how to deal with offences. We are also making the radical proposal that magistrates should be able to deal swiftly with low-level cases where guilt is admitted, by dispensing justice in community centres or by video link.

It is also a fundamental principle of justice that it is open. So we are publishing information about police, court and prison performance, and we will broadcast certain court proceedings. The next step is the more widespread naming of offenders online, so communities have confidence that justice has been done.

To be a victim of a crime, even a minor one, is a horrible thing. We should not make it worse through inexcusable delays in bringing offenders to justice. The sooner criminals face the consequences of their actions, the lower the chance of their harming people again.
From a so-called “system” that actually operated in silos, we are building one where police, prosecution and courts work together more effectively. From November, elected police and crime commissioners will help to forge this change, and, with a new responsibility for victims, will ensure that crime is tackled effectively and the cycle of re-offending broken. None of these reforms will compromise historic rights or important principles of justice. Rather, the reverse: justice must be swift, sure and seen to be done, or it is not done at all.
Nick Herbert is Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice