§ Lord Eltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will provide Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary with a statement of the duties which he expects of the Inspectorate of Constabulary.
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Blatch)As promised in the Government's White Paper on Police Reform (Cm 2281), we have provided the Chief Inspector of Constabulary with a clear statement of the duties and responsibilities which we expect the inspectorate should fulfil.
The statement emphasises the key role of the inspectorate as an independent watchdog monitoring police performance and ensuring that standards are maintained. We have made it clear that we will also be looking to the inspectorate to report to my right honourable friend the Home Secretary on the progress being made by police authorities and forces in establishing local strategies for building effective partnerships between the police and the local community.
We have placed copies of the statement in the Libraries of both Houses of Parliament. We are also arranging for it to be circulated to all chief officers of police and to clerks of police authorities.