The main political parties’ manifestos have been published this week (with the exception of Plaid Cymru’s which was published on 31 March). Members of the CIPFA Police Network can download a brief analysis of the crime, policing and justice issues. In the appendix, for reference, there are lists of election promises made by the various parties in their manifestos as sent out previously by e-mail to subscribers to the CIPFA Police Network. In relation to Scotland, at the time of writing the SNP have not yet launched a full manifesto as such, but a series of thematic manifestos. However, they have a vision on crime and justice on their website and it is included in the Appendix. The analysis is categorised into some key themes and what they might mean for police forces and PCCs in England and Wales. It is interesting to note that in recent elections, law and order was a key issue of the election campaigns but, at the time of writing, has yet to play a major part in the campaigns this time around.
Update: the SNP have since launched a manifesto, and in relation to policing it mentions protecting the number of police officers and a pledge to enable Police Scotland to reclaim VAT (N.B. it is a non-departmental public body).