Agenda item

The Chairman to welcome Dame Anne Owers, Chair of the IPCC.

The Chairman welcomed Dame Anne Owers, the Chair of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) to the meeting.

The Chairman thanked Dame Anne for accepting the invitation to attend the Police Committee and made reference to a past visit by Deborah Glass, the then Deputy Chair of the IPCC, in July 2011. He commented that, since that occasion, various nationwide events had affected public perception over the conduct and integrity of the police service. He also spoke about the efforts to improve confidence in the police service through the series of reviews conducted by HMIC on Police Integrity and the proposals to expand the work and remit of the IPCC.

The Chairman highlighted that the City of London Police and the City Corporation had responded robustly to this emerging issue, and referred to the enhancement of the work of the Professional Standards and Integrity Sub-Committee over elements such as hospitality, police officers’ secondary employment, etc. He also explained that this work coincided with the expansion of the work of Action Fraud in receiving fraud reports from across all forces in the country. The Chairman emphasised this point because, in fact, greater public interaction had translated into a recent rise in the number of complaints received by the City Police.

In reply, Dame Anne commented on the IPCC’s effective working relationship with the City of London. Dame Anne highlighted the detailed work which the Sub-Committee conducted in scrutinising every single complaint received by the Force. Dame Anne was also heard on the importance of complaints as both a mechanism of ‘customer feedback’ and ‘an early warning system’ for any organisational issues. Dame Anne advised against placing excessive emphasis on the number of complaints as a high number of complaints did not always equate to poorer performance; it could, conversely, indicate that the public who felt more comfortable to make complaints in the first place. It was also important to understand why complaints occur, what complainants expect from the process and what lessons could be learned from the experience.

Dame Anne also referred to the recent announcement by the Home Secretary that the IPCC’s remit and powers would be expanded and outlined the on-going work which would see some of the resources being transferred from police forces to the Commission. She also emphasised the strong need for the IPCC to remain independence in order to fulfil its function effectively and inspire public confidence.

The Chairman thanked Dame Anne, on behalf of the entire Police Committee, for a most informative and interesting presentation.

RECEIVED.