Theresa May tells the public not to call the police
Our home secretary Theresa May is lucky enough to have full-time police protection but the rest of us will now have to put up with reporting crimes via the Internet.
Yesterday, May declared that using technology would save the police money and suggested that “the growth in the Internet has transformed other services – from shopping to banking – and it is right to give victims and witnesses greater choice over how they report issues to the police”.
As usual, this Vivienne Westwood-clad woman misses the point. The public need and desire easy ways to report crimes yet in Kensington and Chelsea, as an example, there are barely any police stations left. The one in Lucan Place has closed to make way for yet another housing development and the one in Earls Court Road opens for just a few hours each week. In an age when those that govern us, speak of accountability and openness this is just unacceptable.
Police officers should be easily contactable and personable. A faceless system operated from call centres and via the Internet is not a desirable idea. Victims of crime often need a shoulder to cry on or a reassuring voice of support and frankly, we are of the view that the public need bobbies on the beat and police in stations. Theresa May should take note.
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