New GMP chief vows to quit if force fails to improve within two years
Stephen Watson says his first priority is to boost morale within the force, adding officers are "dropping the ball" because of the pressures they face.
Last updated 28th May 2021
The new chief constable of England's second largest police force has vowed he will quit if it is not in a "demonstrably better place'' within two years.
Straight-talking Stephen Watson made the bold statement in his first week in charge of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) which is effectively in "special measures'' after a damning watchdog report revealed the force had failed to properly record 80,000 crimes.
Mr Watson, 52, has a reputation for turning around failing forces after he oversaw marked improvements in his last job as chief constable of South Yorkshire Police.
One policy he introduced at South Yorkshire will be carried over to GMP - the banning of officers having visible tattoos while on duty.
He said: "I don't think the public are ready for cops with tattoos on their faces, on their necks, all over their hands. So those things I'm afraid are incompatible with service in the force.
"If you have got tattoos all over your arms, well you are just going to be issued free of charge with a long-sleeved shirt and you have just got to cover it over.''
In an interview he also explained why he would not have a social media presence.
He said: "The public pay me to be a really good policeman, they do not pay me to be a wannabe celebrity and they really don't give a toss whether I eat granola for my breakfast or not. And I don't do virtue signalling.
"They (the public) don't really care about me as an individual and I'm happy with the arrangement.''
Previous GMP chief constable Ian Hopkins stepped down in December after Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said he asked him to resign in the wake of the scathing report by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).
Mr Watson said: "The assurance I have given, and it's not an easy ask but nonetheless it's the least the public can expect, is that all crime reported to us will be faithfully recorded and will be properly investigated.
"We will investigate it to the satisfaction of the victim, and when they are vulnerable they will be safeguarded, and even when we cannot solve a problem or detect a crime the public should be left with the distinct impression that we have tried our very best in every case.''
He said that would also involve not screening out "minor crimes in the panoply of crime''.
Overall, he said he wants to see GMP return to "doing the basics brilliantly'' and in the short term fix the "lack of clarity about the strategic direction of the force''.
"If within two years this force is not in a demonstrably better place I'll have gone.''