Police authority chief admits merger is likely (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Police authority chief admits merger is likely

THE chief executive of the Police Authority has admitted it is unlikely Wiltshire Police will remain as a stand-alone force despite public support to keep it as it is.

At a meeting in Trowbridge on Monday, the last in a series of public consultations, local councillors and residents voiced their fears about proposed changes to Wiltshire Police.

In an informal poll the majority of those at the meeting voted to keep the force as it is but there was also support for an amalgamation with Dorset and Gloucestershire as it becomes clear there is little chance for Wiltshire to remain a stand-alone force.

After the meeting, Police Authority chief executive Kieran Kilgallen said: "The reaction in this meeting was pretty typical to the other meetings across Wiltshire. People would vote to retain a stand-alone force if they thought it was an option. It's not likely it'll be kept the same.

"People are looking towards the option of combining Wiltshire with Gloucestershire and Dorset."

He added the Police Authority had been "driven by impossible timescales" to submit their preferred options for change.

The Home Secretary has decided the most suitable options are a regional force for the whole of the south west or two strategic forces, with Devon and Cornwall as a stand alone force and a merger between Avon and Somerset, Gloucestershire, Dorset and Wiltshire.

Although a merger with Gloucestershire and Dorset was not one of the preferred options Mr Kilgallen said there was still a chance that this option could be further explored.

But West Wiltshire district councillor Gordon Cox said he supported Wiltshire Police and felt the Government had acted disgracefully.

"I'm a Labour party member but I'm disgusted with what the Government is doing," he said.

Other district and town councillors at the meeting voiced their concerns that Wiltshire, as one of the safest counties in the country, could end up merging with Avon and Somerset, which would mean sharing resources with Bristol.

Westbury town councillor Bill Braid said: "Why would we want to go in with Avon and Somerset when they have not performed nearly as well?"

West Wiltshire District Council leader Sarah Content agreed that the majority of people in Wiltshire were proud of the fact it was a safe, rural area and would not want resources going towards crime hotspots in cities.

Judy Rooke, who chaired Monday's meeting, said: "It is clear people feel this is a county police force which already has good local policing."