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Emily Spurrell has been elected as Chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC).
Emily is the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Merseyside and takes over as APCC Chair from Donna Jones, PCC for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
Following the vote by the APCC’s membership at its Annual General Meeting on 27 September, Emily said, “I am enormously proud and grateful to be elected as Chair of the APCC by my fellow Police and Crime Commissioners, PFCCs and Deputy Mayors. On behalf of all APCC’s members, I would like to thank Donna Jones for her work and dedication during her time as Chair.
“Police and Crime Commissioners’ key focus is on local priorities such as reducing anti-social behaviour, making our streets safer, and reducing violence against women and girls and youth violence. These are very much aligned with the new government’s stated aims and, as the voice of the public in policing, we look forward to working with ministers to achieve these goals.
“Whilst we need to ensure our police have the tools they need to combat crime, we would all rather the offences were not being committed in the first place. I want to see more of a focus on prevention to divert those at risk of being drawn into crime, and on rehabilitation to reduce the high rate of reoffending that sees offenders stuck in a revolving door going in and out of our hugely overcrowded prisons and putting strain on an overstretched Probation Service.
“After a difficult few years which has required policing to reflect carefully on its relationship with the public, PCCs have been key to driving cultural change within forces in order to rebuild public confidence and, as APCC Chair, I will continue to work with police leaders to deliver a service of which all our communities feel proud.
“In recent months, we have seen the very best of our police service – officers running towards danger to protect the public and places of worship, standing up against racism and thuggery. There’s no doubt there are challenges ahead, but I’m hugely proud to take up this role at a time of fresh optimism and hope for the future, to work with all our partners to build safer streets for communities across England and Wales.”
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