Plan for meeting rule change aims to let people quiz Bedfordshire's Police and Crime Commissioner

Members of the public would be able to ask the Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) questions during a regular public meeting, if changes to its rules are approved.

Bedford borough councillor Tim Caswell has proposed an amendment to the Police and Crime Panel's rules that will let people ask the PCC questions directly at the start of panel meetings. The proposals are set to be debated on Tuesday (February 6).

The proposed change aims to "encourage greater debate on crime and policing matters" encourage greater public attendance and participation in the affairs of the panel.

Currently, members of the public can only direct questions to the panel's chair.

The Bedfordshire Police and Crime Panel is a statutory body set up to challenge, scrutinise, and support the county's PCC, but not police operational matters.

It is made up of councillors from Bedford Borough (three), Central Bedfordshire (four) and Luton Borough (three), and four members of the public.

The PCC has recently been under fire from Central Bedfordshire Council – which says the role should be scrapped. The council invited PCC Festus Akinbusoye to its new Police and Crime Advisory Panel – but the PCC hit back saying it was time for “a little less conversation and a bit more action” when improving the county’s policing”. He said: “I’d rather be out there getting things done for local people and continuing the direct engagement with them instead of being sat in a council building having yet another meeting that duplicates existing meetings.”