The Death Knell for Local Policing? Why the Home Secretary’s Plan Risks Erasing Historic Forces Like Durham

The Home Secretary’s decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners is already sending shockwaves through policing. But for smaller, historic forces like Durham Constabulary, the danger runs far deeper than governance reform. This could be the beginning of the end for local policing as we know it.

Let’s be clear: by removing the directly elected PCC – the only person with a democratic mandate dedicated solely to defending a local police force – the Government is paving the way for forced mergers and regional takeovers. Once the PCC goes, there is no political counterweight left. Chief Constables, who are operational leaders not political defenders, will have no ability to resist Whitehall or mayoral pressure to “rationalise” policing boundaries. They will be told to fall into line or risk their future.

And that puts forces like Durham directly in the firing line.

Durham Constabulary is one of the oldest and most respected forces in the country. It serves a proud area with a strong local identity – an area that historically was far larger than today. County Durham once included Hartlepool, Sunderland, Gateshead, South Tyneside, Stockton and Darlington. It was one of England’s great counties before decades of political and local government reorganisations carved it up. What remains is smaller, but no less distinctive – and no less deserving of its own police force.

But without a directly elected PCC standing up for this identity, Durham risks being swallowed whole by its larger neighbours. A Northumbria–Cleveland “super force” is not fantasy; it is the Home Office’s natural direction of travel. Senior officials have repeatedly spoken about reducing the number of forces, aligning policing with mayoral boundaries, and creating larger regional structures. Once PCCs disappear, the final barrier to that agenda disappears with them.

The public should see this for what it is: centralisation dressed up as modernisation.

And the Home Secretary’s claim that scrapping PCCs will save money on elections simply does not withstand scrutiny. It is either an astonishing misunderstanding of how elections work – or a deliberate attempt to mislead.

PCC elections already happen on the same day as local and mayoral elections, at minimal additional cost. The polling stations, staff and administration are already in place. The idea that removing a single extra ballot paper saves millions is absurd.

Worse still, ministers are ignoring – or concealing – the fact that mayors will still have to be elected in 2028. You cannot abolish democratic accountability in policing without replacing it with another democratic mandate. So the election bill still arrives, whether the Home Office acknowledges it or not. Any suggestion of significant savings is fantasy economics.

The truth is simple:the claimed savings are not real. The consequences, however, are.

Once Durham’s PCC is removed, our force becomes vulnerable. Local accountability is weakened. Local priorities are diluted. Rural and semi-rural communities lose their voice.  And once a historic force is merged, it never returns.

Durham Constabulary has protected its communities for generations. Its fate should not be determined by rushed reforms, flawed assumptions, or the political convenience of ministers looking for quick headlines.

Local policing matters. Local identity matters. And without strong, elected champions to defend them, both are at risk of being erased.

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