Category: Article

  • Graham Bright

    Graham Bright (Source) On the evening of Friday the 7th of September 2012 Cambridgeshire Conservatives held an event at which they had a second go at selecting a candidate for the role of Police and Crime Commissioner. They were trying again as the person they had previously selected in a postal ballot of their membership, […]

  • Penultimate Meeting of Cambridgeshire Police Authority – September 2012

    I observed the penultimate full meeting of the Cambridgeshire Police Authority on the 7th of September 2012. Key and Notable Points The Chief Constable urged the public to be “patient and persistent” when trying to phone the police. I thought this astonishing as he, and the authority, should be getting the phones answered promptly. No […]

  • Police Authority Finance and Resources Ctte – September 2012

    On the 5th of September 2012 I observed a meeting of Cambridgeshire Police Authority’s Finance and Resources Committee. Cllr Johnstone Calls for Illiterate People to be Recruited as Police Constables Recently convicted Cllr Shona Johnstone who was chairing the meeting, and is seeking to become the Conservative candidate for Police and Crime commissioner, called for […]

  • Cambridge Court Usher Defies Lord Chief Justice on Transparancy

    Inside Cambridge Magistrates’ Court (source) In December 2011 the Lord Chief Justice reportedly said “Twitter as much as you wish”, when issuing Practice guidence on live, text-based forms of communications (including Twitter) from court for the purposes of fair and accurate reporting. However in practice it does not appear to be possible to routinely report […]

  • Emergency Planning Briefing – Cambridgeshire County Council

    Cambridgeshire County Council Cabinet Member Steve Tierney. (Source) Cambridgeshire County Council’s Executive Councillor for Public Health, Cllr Steve Tierney, has created a “cabinet advisory group” to look at emergency planning / disaster preparedness in the county which he invited me to join. Three meetings of the group have been scheduled, the first, held on the […]

  • Cambridge Councillors Deprioritise Police Enforcement of 20MPH Limits

    Prominent 20 mph signage, and traffic slowing pinch point, in Saffron Walden Councillors at Cambridge’s West/Central Area Committee on the 23rd of August 2012 voted to drop enforcing the city centre’s 20mph speed limits as a police priority. A vote was held, and only two councillors, Whitebread and Nesthinga, supported retaining 20mph enforcement as a […]

  • Policing Cambourne – Caldecote – Comberton – Granchester – Hardwick – Madingley – August 2012

    Neighbourhood Panel Meeting Here Tonight Sign Outside SCDC HQ On the evening of Wednesday the 22nd of August 2012 I observed local policing priorities for the Cambourne area being set at a meeting held in the South Cambridgeshire District Council offices. The Cambourne area covers Barton, Bourn, Caldecote, Cambourne, Caxton, Comberton, Coton, Croxton, Eltisley, Granchester, […]

  • Snowy Farr Statue Unveiled

    On the 7th of August 2012 I watched the unveiling of a statue of charity fundraiser Snowy Farr outside the Guildhall in Cambridge. It has been reported the statue cost £50,000. In my view spending this sum of public money to commemorate a fund-raiser doesn’t make sense, it amounts to somewhere around half of what […]

  • Policing East Cambridge – August 2012

    During Cambridge’s East Area Committee on Thursday the 2nd of August 2012 councillors held the police to account for their performance over the previous couple of months and set new priorities. I have written about three aspects of the policing section of the meeting separately: Tackling Problems Caused by Street Drinkers in East Cambridge Police […]

  • Tackling Problems Caused by Street Drinkers in East Cambridge

    I observed Cambridge’s East Area Committee on Thursday the 2nd of August 2012. One of the key things raised, as usual for East Area Committee meetings, was crime, and other problems related to street drinkers in the area. The committee heard from two members of the public one of whom was Joanna Dean of Norfolk […]