Once again North Wales Police target drivers, this time over the use of seatbelts. Whilst I am all for road safety I do wonder if our Police’s valuable time would not be better spent catching the real criminals circulating in our communities.
I am fully aware that being in a moving vehicle without a seatbelt is an offence but, as police priorities go, there must be a dozen, or so, higher prioritised crimes that they could be targeting such as drugs, burglary and anti social behaviour.
It seems to me that NWP see the driver as an easy target, a way of increasing their clear-up record, yes. A way of cohesion with the general public, no. Faith in our police force is at an all time low, we no longer hold the respect for our officers that we used to. Surely the senior officers of NWP know this and, one would think, instead of further alienation of the public, they would be trying to repair bridges.
I know there are some new police strategies in place and that some of them appear to be working, it just worries me that NWP are pushing the public patience a bit too far.
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On-the-spot Points for Careless Driving
'Thousands more motorists will lose their licences under plans to give police the power to issue penalty points for careless driving without evidence being heard in court.
Police will be much less likely to give verbal warnings and will instead issue fixed-penalty notices for minor offences such as failing to signal, passing too close to a cyclist or not displaying lights at night. Drivers will pay an automatic fine and have three penalty points added to their licences.'
Now 'Police Chiefs PLC' cashes in on speeding drivers
By Jason Lewis and Liam Clarke
Last updated at 10:01 PM on 21st February 2009
ACPO will earn millions from the 'retraining' of drivers caught breaking the speed limit
Britain's most powerful policing organisation has set up a private company to cash in on its own orders to send speeding drivers on retraining courses.
The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) has told all police forces that from April hundreds of thousands of motorists should be sent on Speed Awareness Schemes rather than receiving penalty points and fines.
At the same time it has set up a new company which will earn millions of pounds running the only database recording which motorists are eligible for 'retraining'.
ACPO is already under fire after The Mail on Sunday disclosed that, despite setting police policy on everything from anti-terrorism to speed cameras, it is a private company - dubbed Police Chiefs PLC by this newspaper - with an annual income, mostly funded by the taxpayer, of £18million.
Now it is set to earn an estimated £5million a year checking speeding drivers' eligibility for the national Driver Offender Retraining Scheme.
The work is being done by ACPO subsidiary company Road Safety Support (RSS). It will oversee a database that holds records on whether speeding drivers are disqualified from taking a retraining course because they had already taken one in the previous three years.
More...Police chiefs sell 60p criminal record checks for £70
According to the DVLA, this database was set up by the Government agency but in January 2008 was turned over to ACPO.
Now RSS has the job of running the database and police forces will be charged £5 for each driver's details checked. Last year 2.1million drivers were caught speeding in the UK.
If only half qualify for a training course, the company will generate an income of more than £5million a year by checking drivers' eligibility.
RSS also makes money from around 30 police and local authorities running safety camera partnerships.
'Police Chiefs PLC': ACPO's Central London headquarters
RSS is yet to file accounts with Companies House but it has told local police that this operation will generate a turnover of £900,000 in its first year of operation.
It earns this money by charging speed camera partnerships a percentage of the £110million Government grant each area gets to spend on road safety projects.
The speed camera managers are promised access to RSS's self-styled 'Dream Team' of experts to combat 'loophole lawyers' who get clients acquitted of offences on technicalities.
But RSS lawyer Andrew Perry actually works for the Crown Prosecution Service and his work is already funded by the taxpayer.
Last night a CPS spokesman said: 'Andrew Perry is a Crown Advocate, employed by and paid by the CPS, who is seconded to work with Road Safety Support. RSS pay the CPS the full cost of this secondment.'
An ACPO spokesman said: 'ACPO is introducing speed awareness courses nationally. Driver Offender Retraining course attendance will...be held with the Police National Computer. Administration will be provided by RSS.
'The database administration charge is £1.50. It is proposed that this will increase to £5. RSS does not make profits and any surplus will be returned to road safety initiatives.'
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