Thinking about this I'm disappointed at the way things have turned out.
Having had 39 years service I know all too well that there are many sides to each story, much evidence to be considered before reaching a conclusion and that it’s of the utmost importance to believe that the system of justice, and how its administered, is being done so for the integrity of the law and the benefit of our citizens.
Yet my faith in the foregoing has been shaken by many instances of such excess, such manipulation and such dereliction of duty. As far as I see things, policing at the moment is being performed every bit as much for the benefit of the political agenda, budgetary considerations and trendy nostrums than for the grass roots reasons of upholding the law and protecting life and property.
Many in authority (not just the police) have abused their positions had have sought to further their interests by manipulating the very system they seek to uphold; this is unforgivable in my view,
The amount of information held on people (supposedly in secure circumstances and for very specific reasons) makes the temptation for some to use it for purposes beyond those which are legal a very real worry as the amount of damage this can do to a persons circumstances is sometimes quite substantial.
Similarly, when it comes to the expectation many people quite rightly have that they will be protected by the forces of law and order, it’s also sad to see how that expectation is regularly diminished as a result of what seems to be an interpretation of the law that favours those wrongdoers rather than their victims. Such imbalance hardly inspires confidence in a system that has grown far beyond that which is healthy.
In short, there’s too much theory, too much notional activity based on what is considered to be good for the system, (as its viewed by Chief Officers, ACPO and the Home Office) fall within the budget and is judged to be the minimum amount necessary to get a job done and not enough hands-on practical activity performed with the intention of upholding the law and properly protecting our people.