A reminder that today Thursday 6th May is the day of the election for our next Police & Crime Commissioner for the Avon & Somerset area.

Heather Shearer is the Liberal Democrat candidate. She is currently Vice Chair of Somerset’s Police & Crime Panel, the Mendip District Councillor with special responsibility for Community Health & Safety, a member of the Safer Somerset Partnership, a Parish Councillor and an active member of her local community in Street, and so has alot of relevant experience. Heather’s priorities for policing are to:

• Restore trust in the Police by increasing transparency and accountability
• Prevent violence against women both on the street and in their own home 
• Ensure the community Police teams are properly resourced and locally directed
• Invest more in high volume crimes that people care about
• Work in partnership to create a public health approach to reducing crime
• Facilitate an evidence-based conversation around drugs reform and reform how Police resources are used in this area
• Prevent and reduce offending, not just count arrests
• Ensure we have a properly inclusive Police Force

You can see more about Heather here.
 

This election uses the Supplementary Vote system, so you have two votes, a first and second preference. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the first choice votes, only the top 2 candidates are taken through to a final runoff. If your first choice candidate is eliminated, and your second choice is for one of the top 2, your second choice is then counted. 

You can also see the debate between all the candidates on the recent BBC Politics West programme here.

The current Police & Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens (Independent) is not standing again. Four other candidates are standing this time. Previous election results are here.

Also please see my last newsletter here. 

Do let me know if you have any questions or issues I need to help address. 

Best wishes,

Adam Boyden

Mendip District Councillor for Frome College ward

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