What's all this then?

You probably didn't know, but the devolution of policing
was discussed at length in the National Assembly last week.
(Pic : BBC Cymru Fyw)

This is one of those rare occasions where I'm spoiled for choice in terms of what to cover from the National Assembly. It's just a shame everything was crammed into the last fortnight when my head is already on a break.

There was a pretty good Plaid Cymru-sponsored debate on TTIP (watch here – more from Plaid Monmouth), the introduction of slightly controversial new regulations on "puppy farming", the announcement that a not-for-profit company might be created to run the Wales & Borders rail franchise.

Then there's yesterday's cross-party debate on euthanasia (one of the best I can remember, and it's regretful I'm not covering it, watch here) - though the Assembly eventually rejected the motion.

It underlines weaknesses in the Welsh media in that only one of the things listed above actually got much coverage – and that's the trains. Simon Thomas AM (Plaid, Mid & West Wales) was pretty much left to publicise the euthanasia debate by himself.

I'm a bit late coming to this because I was trying to decide which one to blog about, but I've finally decided to focus on last week's debate on the devolution of policing.

Police Work

Mike Hedges AM (Lab, Swansea East), started by saying that South Wales PCC, Alun Michael, and the First Minister have both expressed support for devolution of policing in light of the Silk Commission, with "many of the levers that affect crime levels" devolved – like community safety. Mike believes devolving policing would allow a more joined-up approach between local services and the Welsh Government. He did, however, believe that national security issues and National Crime Agency should remain non-devolved as these often need to be led "at a British level" and sometimes on a pan-European level.

In response to a question from Simon Thomas AM, Mike said he wouldn't favour a Scottish-style all-Wales police force but (inexplicably) would support two police forces (as opposed to four currently). He said it was "anomalous" that policing hadn't been devolved to Wales when it has to Scotland and Northern Ireland, and this was out of step with countries with a federal system, where policing is controlled at a state level in the US and Germany whilst retaining a "national" police force.

The Welsh Conservatives don't support devolution of policing, full stop. Mark Isherwood AM (Con, North Wales), said devolving policing would be "irresponsible", saying that the cost could be as high as £57million. He said the creation of PCCs was "an act of real devolution" – prompting laughter from the rest of the chamber. He then pointed out the issues surrounding cross-border crime and cross-border co-operation between Wales and England, quoting Labour and Conservative politicians who oppose devolution of policing after expressing strategic concerns.

Later on, former police officer Byron Davies AM (Con, South Wales West) said it was a "source of annoyance" that people without policing experience propose reorganisations. He didn't believe there was any demand for devolution of policing, and PCCs have "delivered real community policing". Byron believes devolution of policing might be "divisive" and open up issues like regional pay. He said there was no similarity between emergency services – after justification for policing devolution based on the fact it was the only non-devolved emergency service – other than "999".

Jocelyn Davies AM (Plaid, South Wales East), said devolution of policing was a "fundamental step forward on our devolution journey", and she was encouraged by the "positive response" from the Welsh Government. She highlighted the issue of domestic violence, where the lack of any control over policing has left the Domestic Violence Bill without any teeth. Jocelyn also highlighted the National Assembly's rejection of PCCs, with Westminster forced it through in EnglandandWales anyway.

Ann Jones AM (Lab, Vale of Clwyd) was unconvinced that policing could be devolved without devolving the criminal justice system, believing they are "intrinsically linked". She also said that devolving powers simply because Scotland has them was "a very weak argument".

Julie Morgan AM (Lab, Cardiff North) said policing is a major public service and should work alongside other public services, many of which are devolved. She also said it was "absolutely right" to scrap PCCs due to the lack of public support (emphasising low turnout figures at the PCC elections). Nick Ramsay AM (Con, Monmouth) countered this by saying the Assembly elections often have low turnouts too.

Speaking on behalf of the Welsh Government, the First Minister said there was a "template" for devolution of policing based on Scotland, and having a "porous border" doesn't stop Wales "delivering services our own way" or preventing Wales co-operating with the rest of the UK. He emphasised the point raised earlier about PCCs being "imposed" on Wales when they haven't been on Scotland or Northern Ireland, and this "must never happen again".

Turning to Ann Jones, he said he believes policing can be devolved without the criminal justice system as police "bring people to the door of the criminal justice system, while the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) escorts them through it." Control and funding of the police doesn't, therefore, affect the criminal justice system, but devolving something like probation could require sentencing powers to control numbers going through the system.

Carwyn said Silk II can't be "cherry-picked" by Westminster, which he said is something they wouldn't dream of doing in Scotland, adding that Wales was "being treated in a more discriminatory way than Scotland", demanding Westminster "treat Wales with the same respect".

Peter Black AM (Lib Dem, South Wales West) finished the debate saying that while some functions should still be controlled UK-wide, a strong case has been made for devolving policing to Wales and that the Welsh Government already funds some policing functions which are beyond its remit – like Tarian – and funds up to 50% of policing costs from its own budget. He said devolving policing would be "a sensible recognition of the reality of policing in Wales".

The motion was approved by 34 votes to 10 with 2 abstentions (Ann Jones & Lynne Neagle).

Detective Work

Policing might well stand apart from the criminal justice system, but
ambulances, for example, are no less separate from the health service.
(Pic : Voice of America)

At present policing is partially devolved. We have directly-elected Police and Crime Commissioners who raise funds through council tax precepts, which are controlled locally. As said during the debate, the Welsh Government also has a community safety remit, best exemplified by Welsh Labour's previous election promise to hire an extra 500 PCSOs – a commitment they've kept, to be fair, however unambitious it might be.

It's a lot easier to devolve policing because it doesn't, in itself, require a Welsh legal jurisdiction. So the First Minister is right to say that policing is insulated from the criminal justice system. Police collect evidence, detain suspects and enforce laws; but they have no role in actually changing the law or what happens to suspects once they go to court.

However, using the First Minister's own analogy, ambulances bring patients to the door of the NHS, and doctors escort them into hospital. So wanting control of policing without control of the criminal justice system is a lot like wanting control of the ambulance service without wanting control of the NHS - which would be a very confusing arrangement.

Unfortunately, creating a Welsh legal jurisdiction and criminal justice system would require a lot of work (Creating a Welsh legal jurisdiction) – and it's not due to be considered as outlined in Silk II until the 2020s.

Devolving policing on its own – with or without the probation and criminal justice systems – is a bit lazy. It's "cherry-picking" powers by itself, as policing is what the public associate most with criminal justice (and therefore it's politically beneficial to be seen to control) but it's actually a small part of a bigger machine.

What I don't get about about Welsh Labour/the Welsh Government is that they don't seem to understand that if you want to control an area of public policy, you often have to accept related powers over something you don't want in order for it to function properly.

Wales could find itself in a position where we'll control policing but won't have any powers to change criminal law itself or deal with the rehabilitation of offenders - which is useless, as the police will be enforcing laws we don't make. It would make more sense to delay the devolution of policing until work starts on devolving the criminal justice system as a whole.