Police and Crime Commissioner applies for judicial review over “hostile takeover” transfer of powers to Mayor

The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Simon Foster, has launched a judicial review challenge against the Home Secretary over the decision to transfer the PCC’s powers to the West Midlands Mayor.

The Government last week laid legislation in Parliament to transfer PCC functions to the West Midlands and South Yorkshire mayors.

The transfer will mean that those mayors will have oversight over their respective local police forces “to improve collaboration across public services”, the Home Office claimed.

The PCC role will be assumed by newly elected mayors across those local areas following the upcoming elections in May 2024.

Announcing the judicial review challenge, West Midlands PCC Simon Foster said: “This is a matter that is entirely of the Mayor’s [Andy Street’s] own making. I have repeatedly advised him not to waste taxpayers’ money, proceeding with his cynical, divisive and undemocratic power grab, that is in no-one’s interests, save that of the Mayor.

“Sadly, the Mayor has refused to listen. He has left me with no alternative, but to proceed with an application for judicial review.”

Foster claimed that the West Midlands Mayor had failed to secure a democratic mandate for the transfer of PCC powers in 2019 and again in 2021.

“His government changed the law, to remove the need for a democratic mandate in 2023,” he added.

“The Home Secretary and the Mayor adopted an unlawful procedure in December 2023. I had to take legal action, to compel them to launch a last minute, panic driven, 11th hour public consultation. The Mayor then refused to engage in public debate with me.

“I was refused the opportunity to make my case before the Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The Home Secretary and Mayor then failed to secure a mandate via the public consultation, because a majority of people disagreed with the transfer of PCC powers to the Mayor.”

Foster added: “The Mayor has repeatedly failed to make to make out his case. Yet, he is persisting with his hostile takeover, in defiance of local democracy, contrary to the principles of devolution and against the will of the people.”

A spokesperson for Mayor Street said: “Perhaps if the PCC had put this much energy into his job over the last three years then we wouldn’t be in a situation where crime has doubled with his force in special measures. We dread to think how much taxpayer money is being wasted on London lawyers by the PCC in trying to save his job, money that should be in the West Midlands Police budget to be spent on frontline officers.

“To be really clear the Mayor is not subject to this judicial review, and has no intention of backing away from taking the tough steps required to tackle the scourge of crime across the West Midlands.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “The Government's plan to level up the country includes the ambition for more mayors to be accountable for policing and crime locally, as is already the case in London, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire.

“Following public consultation the Home Secretary has made the decision to transfer the Police and Crime Commissioner functions to the Mayor of the West Midlands. This will come into effect in May following the mayoral elections.”