Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 6
6
Deferred
Paragraph: 54
Appoint an independent chair alongside the IOPC director general to restore checks and balances
Recommendation
It has been argued that uniting the roles of chair and director general of the IOPC aids clearer decision-making and action. We disagree. This is not normal practice and it detracts from the ability properly to scrutinise the executive action of the IOPC and to hold it to proper account. We recommend that the Government appoint an independent chair alongside the director general of the IOPC as a matter of urgency to restore the usual checks and balances.
Government Response Summary
The government did not address the recommendation to appoint an independent chair alongside the IOPC director general. Instead, it discussed risks related to representation in Police Standards Departments and stated it would outline actions on ethnic minority staffing in PSDs in its response to the Macpherson report.
Paragraph Reference:
54
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
The Home Office and the NPCC recognise the risk of a lack of appropriate representation within a number of PSDs and we must not be complacent. Whilst this is not an issue unique to PSDs, the role these departments play in instilling public and staff confidence, changing the culture and maintaining standards across forces means that it is crucial that they work to be truly representative of the workforce. The Home Office will respond to the recommendations made in the Committee’s Macpherson report and will outline the urgent actions the government, and policing partners, have and are taking on disparity in ethnic minority staffing in PSDs.