Home secretary ‘deeply concerned’ at GMP ‘failings’
Priti Patel has written a letter to the force demanding to see a plan for improvements following a damning inspection report.
Last updated 11th Dec 2020
The Home Secretary has written to the chief constable of Greater Manchester Police and regional mayor Andy Burnham expressing ‘deep concerns’ that the force is falling short.
It follows the publication of a report on Thursday which revealed GMP failed to record about 80,000 crimes in a year and closed cases without proper investigation.
HM Inspectorate of Constabulary said the force’s service to victims of crime was a ‘serious cause of concern’.
Mr Burnham has apologised on GMP’s behalf.
A letter sent the the force from home secretary Priti Patel MP, said: “I am deeply concerned that in too many cases the service provided to victims, particularly vulnerable victims, is falling short, that too many crimes are not being recorded and that in too many cases those failures relate to crimes of domestic abuse.
“This report follows previous crime data integrity inspections which showed serious failings to record crime, and to therefore treat victims as they should be treated.
“I am also aware of wider issues relating to the quality of service that the people of Greater Manchester are receiving from their force as highlighted by disappointing findings on effectiveness and efficiency in recent inspections.
“The report paints a worrying picture of failings in tackling crime more broadly.
“Most troubling was the inspectorate’s finding of a cause for concern in relation to safeguarding of the most vulnerable victims.
“I would be grateful if the chief constable would send me your recovery plan at the earliest opportunity.
“This will help me understand the steps you collectively plan to take to remedy the issues identified.”
GMP said the force had ‘robust plans’ to address the issues.
But in a statement, the Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling admitted challenges remain:
"GMP always regret when a victim of crime feels let down by us and I understand their frustration.
"The challenge we have is that our demands are much greater now than has ever been the case and our resources are much more stretched. Unfortunately, that means we cannot offer the level of service which the public often expects.
"The harsh reality is that we must select how we utilise our resources and that means we cannot investigate every crime to the extent we would wish. This means that some crimes are investigated over the phone without an officer being deployed.
"We have to make decisions based on threat, harm and risk. We understand why the public find this disappointing at times but we must prioritise.
"Of course, this means we should remain professional at all times, we should keep the promises we make and we should keep people informed about cases. Where there is a higher risk or threat, then this is where we should focus our resource. Where this has not happened, it is unacceptable and we apologise.
"Supporting victims is always at the forefront of everything we do, and we will continue to act on any learnings to secure the best possible outcomes for victims going forward."
Yesterday Andy Burnham apologised on behalf of GMP and has today written a letter in response to the home secretary.
He said: “While I can assure you I take the recent HMICFRS report as seriously as you do, I think it is important that we recognise the successes that police forces achieve."