Schedule 11: Crime and disorder strategies
246.Schedule 11 amends the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.
247.Paragraph 2 amends section 5(1) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (responsible authorities for strategies) which lists the authorities responsible, together, for formulating and implementing strategies in relation to reducing crime and disorder etc. When exercising these functions together, the responsible authorities are known collectively as a Community Safety Partnership. The paragraph removes the references to police authorities from section 5, without replacing them with references to police and crime commissioners. Police and Crime commissioners will not be members of Community Safety Partnerships.
248.Paragraphs 2 and 3 amend those provisions in section 5 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 dealing with mergers of Community Safety Partnerships in England. These provisions apply only in relation to local government areas in England and currently the power to merge rests with the Secretary of State. These paragraphs provide instead for the mergers to take place by agreement between the responsible authorities and police and crime commissioner. The Secretary of State will retain a role in agreeing to mergers which involve more than one police area (see the new section 5A(5) inserted by paragraph 3).
249.Paragraph 4 amends section 6 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (formulation and implementation of strategies). The amendments allow regulations to confer functions on a police and crime commissioner in England in relation to strategies for any local government area that lies in their force area. This includes provision for the commissioner to arrange meetings to assist development and implementation of strategies; being chair of any such meetings; and being able to specify attendees which may include representatives of the responsible authorities comprising a Community Safety Partnership in their force area.
250.Paragraph 5 amends section 7 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (supplemental). Section 7 makes provisions for the Secretary of State to require the responsible authorities comprising a Community and Safety Partnership to submit a report on any matter relating to the exercise of their functions, apart from devolved Welsh functions. This power is transferred to the relevant policing body (which will be the police and crime commissioner for police areas outside of London). The power must be exercised in a reasonable and proportionate manner, and only where the relevant policing body is not satisfied the responsible authorities within a Community and Safety Partnership are performing their functions adequately.