Well, I did say in my last update to watch this space in regards to police reform and today (12 May) the House of Lords rejected Police and Crime Commissioners.

We knew that the Police and Social Reform Bill was causing a bit of a stir in the House of Lords with some rather strong doubts being voiced about the concept of the directly elected Police and Crime Commissioner, so I welcome the vote by Peers to reject the idea of Police and Crime Commissioners from the Government's Bill.

We have for a long time now raised our concerns about the timescale, representation, potential politicisation of the police with directly elected commissioners and cost to the public purse. We are also concerned about the concentration of power in one person and cannot see how the diverse communities of Lancashire from rural Carnforth to Skelmersdale could be properly represented. We also know from our own and national research that there has been little public appetite for this expensive reform and I am glad that the Lords have listened to these issues.

We will continue follow the debate on Police and Crime Commissioners closely and we look forward to seeing some evidence base for the Government’s model. In the meantime, locally, we will continue to work hard on residents behalf, focusing on performance and addressing what the public value most.  At the national level, we  will continue to work through the Association of Police Authorities and with the Home Office to make sure that the legislation properly reflects the best way forward for policing governance.