“It is important that local people are aware of the proposed changes this government have announced in the Police Reform White Paper which contains a number of proposals with far-reaching implications for policing across England and Wales which will be felt locally in the Humberside Police area. Restoring confidence in policing and improving outcomes for the public is a shared priority across all political parties. It is crucial that any proposed changes do not inadvertently weaken local service delivery, local accountability or destabilise the community-based policing that has delivered strong results in Humberside.
It has already been reported that Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be abolished in 2028 saving money on election costs. Their powers will transfer to a Local Policing Board who will appoint a Local Policing Lead. The Government has argued that this will reduce bureaucracy and save money to reinvest in frontline officers, but you as the public will lose your right to choose your Local Policing Lead, this will dilute the democratic link between communities and those who set policing priorities and it is widely doubted that savings will be created from this change.
This government propose the creation of a National Police Service (NPS) which will be a centralised body, a “British FBI,” to handle complex national investigations including organised crime, terrorism, fraud, and online child abuse. This looks to be a re-name of the National Crime Agency who could be strengthened and supported to better work for the country wide threats with local forces. In addition to this a move to create regional serious organised crime forces which again exist through our Regional Organised Crime Units, a collaboration for Humberside with our three neighbouring Yorkshire forces led and coordinated by four local policing bodies and four Chief Constables each able to ensure the interests of their force area. Moving away from this model causes concern that Humberside may see less of this resource due to competing demands of larger cities elsewhere in the region. I will be working hard to ensure that we protect the interests of our rural, coastal and urban areas in whatever change is proposed in this space.
A reduction in the number of police forces and a new performance framework with league-table style measures and a Home Office performance unit to drive consistency across forces I don’t believe will drive better policing for local people. Humberside Police is a moderate sized force in comparison to many across the country and yet has consistently been the highest performing. It is not rooted in evidence that larger forces and previous mergers produce better outcomes for local people. This will be extremely costly and detrimental to local communities if advanced as planned. Targets can also drive poor decision making to focus on the target and not the outcome. Outcomes matter. We have worked hard in Humberside to have an ethos of doing the right thing, reducing crime by doing things right not by hitting a target. While accountability and standards are vital, over-reliance on centrally managed performance targets risks skewing priorities away from locally defined safety concerns toward meeting numerical benchmarks that may not reflect real community experience.
New national response standards requiring police to meet strict emergency response times and call handling standards are already achieved in Humberside and any changes are likely to be detrimental to performance, not enhance it.
The College of Policing also faces an indirect slur from this white paper through the introduction of mandatory professional licensing for all police officers and updated workforce reforms intended to ensure ongoing competence among officers. Competence of our frontline was not an area of concern I expected to see addressed in this white paper. We have a dedicated, well trained, professionally vetted workforce and the introduction of a license to practice seems to be a wasted focus which will be inevitably costly with minimal gains that couldn’t have been achieved already with more consistency in training as per College of Policing guidelines and standards.
For communities in Humberside, these proposed reforms require careful consideration. Humberside Police has achieved consistently improving outcomes for communities. Crime is falling above national rates, victims are reporting improved support, 999 calls are already being answered within 10 seconds, Humberside has strong PEEL inspection results reflecting effective local leadership, strong neighbourhood policing and positive community engagement. Maintaining and building on these strengths should be the priority of any reform agenda.
Local people do not see policing in abstract terms; they experience it in the everyday contexts of neighbourhood patrols, timely responses to incidents, and trust that their concerns are heard and acted upon. Every year I formally consult with the communities I serve to ensure I hold your police force to account with priorities set by you. Weakening the structures that connect communities to police leadership risks damaging public confidence at a time when police legitimacy is critical. I find it doubtful a regional police force will have the capacity or capability to engage with the public locally in the same way. In my latest survey I asked the public their views on current and future force models and governance. Only 14.8% were convinced that a regional force would bring any benefit to them locally. Overwhelmingly the public are minded to support more local force sizes where they are closer to decision making.
Any reform to policing should not be based solely on saving money the public should expect effective local policing, democratic accountability, and any change to bring lasting improvements in public safety. As this White Paper progresses through consultation and Parliament, I will continue to advocate strongly for the interests of Humberside’s communities, ensuring that reforms enhance—not diminish—the quality, responsiveness, and accountability of policing at the local level.”
Jonathan Evison
Police and Crime Commissioner for Humberside
26 January 2026
