Transcript of this meeting [PDF]

We are hugely committed to this and, as I have said to other people who are very worriedabout are we going to use this as an opportunity to walk away from SaferNeighbourhoods, it is a bizarre accusation - not from the MPA - and a bizarre worrybecause we actually invented Safer Neighbourhoods. The MPS invented it. The personthat actually did the research is now the Deputy Commissioner. We are passionate aboutthis thing and we know the benefits it has brought. Why would there be any suspicionthat we are not going to do everything we can to maintain it and modernise it andimprove it? I cannot guarantee resources until I see the bigger picture and I see theamount of money that we have got. My desire would not be to take resources away.That is a clear desire. I want to make sure we do it the best way we possibly can.Toby Harris (AM): And fairness?Sir Paul Stephenson (Commissioner, MPS): Fairness. Actually that is a real debate.Safer Neighbourhoods was about space and it was about reassurance. It was not aboutchasing the crime model. That is quite clear and it has worked. We need to make surewe get the best out of both but it is a real debate that we have to have, and the MPA hasto have, what is the fair distribution of assets, what is the fair way forward, and can wemaintain reassurance whilst doing even better against local crimes? My view is that, ifwe go away from a concept where people in London feel as though they are not getting areturn on their rates, on something that they have had for a long time that suddenly goes,we will be in deep trouble because it will not be acceptable to many neighbourhoods.There is an issue. Some neighbourhoods do not identify with ward boundaries. They seea different shape of neighbourhood. Now I will be frank about it; I am nervous aboutcoming away from ward boundaries. I am very nervous. There is not even a proposal todo that at this moment in time because I recognise the very significant difficulties if youdo it. We have also got to talk to some local people who might want to do somethingaround that. True consultation, rather than imposing our own ideas. There is no decisionon it but I am very nervous about going away from that model, Toby [Harris], because Ithink it has brought real benefit and a real sense of fairness.Kit Malthouse (Chairman): Plus, just to add to that, there is an issue in some areasabout what structure we have created. You might, for instance, find an area where youhave got four Safer Neighbourhood Teams come to a border, there is a hub team, a towncentre team and, perhaps, two Safer Schools officers. How are they operating together asa team and how should that be brigaded for that particular area is something that isperfectly legitimate to look at. In fact, it would be negligent not to look at that. That isbecause of the accretion of particular initiatives over time that have layered these teamsupon teams in a particular area that might need looking at, and that will form part of theproposal too.Sir Paul Stephenson (Commissioner, MPS): And including supervision ratios. Wehave made proposals to the MPA in recent years about making savings on supervisionratios because I think that is where we can make some savings. That is my view. Wewww.merrillcorp.com27