A Good Day for One Nottingham and the Crime and Drugs Partnership (sorta)

A bit late again I know but that's what breaking your ankle and winding up in hospital for 5 days does to you.

Anyway, as I'm sure most readers will have heard, Councillor Jon Collins has been appointed Chair of the Notts Police Authority. Many will not see this as a good thing.

It wasn't an entirely easy ride for him though, the Post reports that he only won by 10 votes to 7 and that the election only went ahead after Bassetlaw Tory Councillor Mike Quigley pulled out at the last minute leaving it between JoCo and independent member Alan Street.

It's this business of Quigley pulling out at the last minute that fascinates me as it smacks of it being a tactical move in order to assist one of the other players. The question is which side was he hoping to help by not potentially splitting the vote? The fact that he's a Tory would suggest that the opposition to Collins' appointment persuaded him to pull out. The fact that he ended up as a Vice Chair suggests that his withdrawal was requested by the eventual winner.

Still, there was clearly a significant minority who didn't want Collins in the post which might not bode well. On the other hand, they're all professionals and I'm quite confidant that no grudges will be held and everyone will get along famously from now on.

What this means is that we now have a pretty much wholesale transfer of top end management from the Crime and Drugs Partnership to the Police Authority. The CDP was supposed to have been the strategic driving force behind reducing crime in Notts but hasn't done particularly well, as this article in the 'Post' explains (worth reading some of the comments too). Now the people who failed in the CDP are in charge of the NPA and we're all expected to believe that this is some sort of solution.

Still, look on the bright side. JoCo has relinquished the reins of 'One Nottingham' and the CDP so he can devote time to his new role. Rumours that Nottingham's supplies of party-poppers, streamers and Champagne have been cornered by the staff of those two organisations are, well, pretty much confirmed from what I hear.