woodburner wrote:Definitely is disconcerting. Read the comments on the link. Many others bothered too.
We talked of this at work today. We agree with the above. The Bow Street Runners were taken under the wing of Gvt. As they would not go into certain areas of London.
Eternal Sunshine wrote:Not sure why everyone is so worried about this. I mean, do we all suddenly have lots of faith in the current police service??
I think you're underestimating how much worse things can get, ES. At least our current Police Force is in theory accountable to the Government, and its duty is to the British people. At least our current Police Force can't employ ex-convicts.
"We're just waiting, looking skyward as the days go down / Someone promised there'd be answers if we stayed around."
British transport police is the oldest private police force in the UK.
G4S will not be allowed to deal with the trivial offences or arrest on suspicion. As you know the more serious the offence, the more general the arrest power. My mum is allowed to arrest a bankrobber.
Just need the teachers to be paid by results and we will not need so many police ( most prisoners being a bit thick)
stumuzz wrote:Just need the teachers to be paid by results and we will not need so many police ( most prisoners being a bit thick)
Can they get any better than they are now? I mean kids get better grades in exams every year. My kids are twice as clever as I was and younger kids are even cleverer than mine. And all that without a teachers bonus.
stumuzz wrote:Just need the teachers to be paid by results and we will not need so many police ( most prisoners being a bit thick)
Can they get any better than they are now? I mean kids get better grades in exams every year. My kids are twice as clever as I was and younger kids are even cleverer than mine. And all that without a teachers bonus.
Unfortunately not all kids are like that. Certainly in any urban area there are schools full of low achievers, kids get caught up by the 'wrong' role models and no matter how good the teacher they are exposed to these examples far more than they are to teachers. Add in resentment to authority that favours these role models and we have a two tier system.
Some prosper some don't.
Based on my family I believe nuture is the big issue in education for the vast majority.
BOT I wonder what is really behind this? Lucrative contracts to private companies who'll then 'look after' the politicians later? The history of privatisation to save money is spotty at best. Apparently the rail operators get about five times what British Rail did!!! Admittedly my source for that is a bit left wing but it does seem to be generally accepted within the industry.
kenneal - lagger wrote:
Can they get any better than they are now? I mean kids get better grades in exams every year. My kids are twice as clever as I was and younger kids are even cleverer than mine. And all that without a teachers bonus.
Good point! However there are results and there are results. An absolute benchmark in the three r´s would be a start.
Eternal Sunshine wrote:Not sure why everyone is so worried about this. I mean, do we all suddenly have lots of faith in the current police service??
I think you're underestimating how much worse things can get, ES. At least our current Police Force is in theory accountable to the Government, and its duty is to the British people. At least our current Police Force can't employ ex-convicts.
Still not a convincing argument. Who knows, they may be MORE accountable than our current police force.
Eternal Sunshine wrote:Not sure why everyone is so worried about this. I mean, do we all suddenly have lots of faith in the current police service??
I think you're underestimating how much worse things can get, ES. At least our current Police Force is in theory accountable to the Government, and its duty is to the British people. At least our current Police Force can't employ ex-convicts.
Still not a convincing argument. Who knows, they may be MORE accountable than our current police force.
I don't see how. Law enforcement isn't like making cars, it's not the case that the best "product" gets the pie: contracts go to the cheapest bidder who offers "assurances" that they won't cut costs. Then as long as there isn't a scandal so massive the public goes up in arms, no one else is likely to get a look-in.
These companies will have no sense of duty to the public; their only interest is profit. The idea of profiting from law enforcement beggars belief. On what basis do they get paid? Number of people locked up? Proportion of crimes "solved"? The latter is a very, very slippery slope as surely anyone with an ounce of intelligence will realise.
It probably doesn't make that much difference; it's quite evident the way things are going. From what I've heard, new police officers are no longer taught that they serve the public but that they serve the State. There was a chastening thread about it on PS a few years ago.
"We're just waiting, looking skyward as the days go down / Someone promised there'd be answers if we stayed around."
Ludwig, I think you may have a better opinion of our current police service than I do. I'm not saying that a move to privatisation of the police is good, just that I don't think there will be any great difference. I am actually a civilian in the service, and on a personal level feel that part of my role is to regulate what the officers try to get up to.
Anyway, we've been told at work that Big Brother is monitoring our internet activity so I'm going to cut it short there.
Eternal Sunshine wrote:Ludwig, I think you may have a better opinion of our current police service than I do. I'm not saying that a move to privatisation of the police is good, just that I don't think there will be any great difference. I am actually a civilian in the service, and on a personal level feel that part of my role is to regulate what the officers try to get up to.
That ought to be the job of the IPCC. Unfortunately the IPCC is completely and utterly useless. It is about as effective at regulating the police as the banking regulators were at regulating the banks, and presumably for similar reasons (foxes put in charge of chicken sheds.)
"We fail to mandate economic sanity because our brains are addled by....compassion." (Garrett Hardin)
Eternal Sunshine wrote:Ludwig, I think you may have a better opinion of our current police service than I do. I'm not saying that a move to privatisation of the police is good, just that I don't think there will be any great difference. I am actually a civilian in the service, and on a personal level feel that part of my role is to regulate what the officers try to get up to.
Fair enough ES. Actually I have a very low opinion of our police services[*] and perhaps you are right that they can't get any worse; I'm just doubtful that privatising them will make them any better. I'm perhaps less horrified by the idea than I implied, since I no longer think TPTB have any concern about the welfare of the nation, whatever systems they install; I no longer think it really makes any difference.
[*] This wasn't always the case; whatever the long-standing problems at the top of the Force, I'm prepared to believe that until recently a large proportion of police officers had the public interest at heart.
"We're just waiting, looking skyward as the days go down / Someone promised there'd be answers if we stayed around."
