Prime-minister-in-waiting Gordon Brown said he will work
to help police fight crime and reduce paperwork through
technology.
Speaking at the annual conference of the
Association of Chief Police
Officers, Brown said police forces must be equipped with
technologies including mobile data devices, which cut down the need
for officers to return to the station, as well as technology to
help fight crime and reduce paperwork such as number-plate
recognition and cameras.
He asked forces to support this through recommendations and issued
an invitation.
“I want forces and individual officers to put forward their
suggestions - original ideas or experience of local initiatives
which they believe should be expanded,” he said. “I have asked Sir
Ronnie [Flanagan] this week to work with you to identify those
innovations that will really make a difference, both in terms of
both effectiveness and efficiency and while always ensuring
safeguards to build people's trust and confidence in new technology
get them into use quickly.”
Chief Constable Peter Neyroud, National Police improvement
Association (NPIA) chief executive, welcomed “the Chancellor’s
commitment to ongoing investment in technology to support policing
improvement.”
“The NPIA is also working closely with Sir Ronnie Flanaghan’s
team on the review of policing and will doubtless play a key role
in taking forward its recommendations,” he said.
“Policing has made great strides in this area over the past
decade. In Airwave the service has a new national secure digital
communication system and policing systems are now available to
provide front-line staff with national information on convicted
criminals, fingerprints and palm prints, DNA and known sex
offenders and violent offenders.
The Chancellor’s commitment will help us to build on these
successes,” saidNeyroud. “In addition to developing this
technology, we must also make sure that the service is properly
supported in its implementation. Where necessary, we will help
forces to change the way they work to gain maximum benefit from the
technology as it is deployed.”
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