Proposed appointment of the Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police
Contact for further information: Ross Jago 01752 307829, Head of Governance, Performance and Risk, Plymouth City Council. [email protected]
Present
Councillor Croad (Chair), Councillors Towill, Hopwood, Chopak, Alvey, Tilbey, Samuel, Arnott, Mrs. Pengelly, Penberthy and Wright.
Officers
Ross Jago - Head of Governance, Performance and Risk, Plymouth City Council
Also in attendance
Will Kerr - Deputy Chief Constable – Police Scotland (preferred candidate), Alison Hernandez - Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner, Fran Hughes - Chief Executive - Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.
Confirmation Hearing
The Chair explained the purpose of the meeting, which was to hold a Confirmation Hearing before making a report and recommendation to the Police and Crime Commissioner (‘the Commissioner’) in relation to her proposed appointment of the Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police.
The hearing was a meeting of the Panel, at which the proposed candidate, Deputy Chief Constable of Police Scotland, Mr. Will Kerr, appeared for the purpose of answering questions relating to the proposed appointment. The meeting was held under provisions in the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.
In advance of the meeting members were referred to the procedure to be followed and it was indicated that when the questions asked of the proposed candidate by Panel members were concluded, the Panel would go into closed session, in order to agree a report and recommendations to the Commissioner.
The Panel’s decision would be communicated to the Commissioner and her preferred candidate immediately, following the discussion.
Details of a report with notification of the proposed appointment and accompanying documents from the PCC, were considered by the Panel. These provided details of the appointment process leading to the PCC’s proposal to appoint and why the candidate satisfied those criteria and the terms and conditions of appointment.
Following a question and answer session the Panel agreed unanimously that Mr. Will Kerr was a suitable candidate and that his appointment should be fully supported. The Panel commented that they looked forward to having the opportunity to discuss key policing matters at future meetings.
The Panel unanimously agreed confirmed its full support for the appointment of Mr. Will Kerr as the new Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police.
