Statutes
| Published date | 01 November 1964 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2230.1964.tb02251.x |
| Date | 01 November 1964 |
STATUTES
POLICE
ACT,
1964
THE Police Act,
1964,
the sequel to the Royal Commission
on
the
Police,
1962,
is at once a consolidating and an innovating measure.
The Act replaces, in simpler form and with several important
changes of detail, the nineteenth-century legislation governing
county and county borough forces, and some of that governing the
Metropolitan and City of London forces, and in addition confers
on
the Home Secretary new powers which will lead to
a
greater degree
of central supervision of provincial police forces than has previously
been possible. Although these changes leave unaltered the basic
structure of local police forces controlled by virtually autonomous
chief constables, the beginnings of a movement towards
centralisation are clearly discernible.
Police Authorities: Constitution
The Act leaves unaltered those provisions of the Metropolitan Police
Acts and the City of London Police Act,
1839,
which deal with the
administrative structure of those forces, but the legislation govern-
ing that of county and county borough forces is entirely replaced.
Section
1
creates the basic duty of maintaining
a
police force for
every county, county borough and combined police area in England
and Wales,= a duty which is by section
4
imposed upon the police
authority for the area concerned. The constitution of the police
authority for a county or county borough is
now
governed by section
2.
In
each case there is to be a committee of the council,
known
in
counties as the police committee and in county boroughs as the
watch committee, and each consisting two-thirds of members of the
council appointed by the council and one-third
of
magistrates
appointed by the magistrates of the area from their own number.
These provisions involve three changes. Magistrates gain a place
on
the watch committee in the borough, but their share of member-
ship of the new county police committee declines from one-half to
one-third. More important, perhaps,
is
the change in the status
of the county police committee. The standing joint conunittee, its
predecessor, was an independent precepting authority 2; the police
committee is a committee of the county council.
1
Provision is made
for
the continuation
of
existing arrangements relating to
detailed parts
of
counties, county boroughs whose force has been consolidated
with that
of
the
surrounding
county, and parts
of
counties included in the
Metropolitan Police District.
2
Ea
p.
Somerset
County Council
(1889) 58
L.J.Q.B.
513.
682
Nov.
1964
STATUTES
683
Alternative provisions for the constitution of police authorities
for combined police areas are included in section
3.
Generally, the
authority will be an independent corporation, constituted according
to the terms of the amalgamation scheme, and consisting, like
other police authorities, of two-thirds councillors (drawn from the
constituent councils) and one-third of magistrates for the consti-
tuent area. Alternatively, at the request of the councils concerned,
the police authority may be constituted
as
a committee of one of the
councils.
Police Authorities: Functions
The traditional view of the principal function of the police authority
is embodied in section
4,
which gives the authority the duty
"
to
secure the maintenance of an adequate and efficient police force
for the area."
To
enable
it
to discharge this function, the
authority is given power to appoint the chief constable
(s.
4
(2))
and to require him to retire in the interests of efficiency
(s.
5
(4)),
in each case subject to the approval of the Home Secretary; to
determine the establishment of the force; to receive from the chief
constable an annual report
on
the policing of the area, and such
reports on specific matters connected with policing as the authority
may require
(s.
12
(1)
and
(2));
to provide, subject to the approval
of the Home Secretary, or in accordance with regulations made by
him, all
building^,^
vehicles, equipment, etc., required for police
purposes
(s.
4
(3)
and
(4));
and to employ civilians for police
purposes
(s.
lo).
The police authority still has no direct control
of the policy of the force in relation to law enforcement, traffic
control and other police duties, but may call the chief constable to
account by exercising the powers to request a report on a specific
matter
(s.
12
(2)
above) and to require him to retire in the interests
of efficiency
(s.
5
(4)).
The chief constable may in turn challenge
the requirement for
a
report on a specific matter by requiring the
authority to refer the matter to the Home Secretary, whose
confirmation then becomes necessary
(s.
12
(3)),
and must be given
a chance to make representations both to the authority
(s.
5 (5))
and to the Home Secretary
(s.
29
(2))
before being required to
retire.
Police Authorities: Relationship with the Council
Financial control
in
both the counties and the county boroughs
is
given to the full council
(s.
8
(4))
who must maintain a separate
police fund
(s.
8
(1))
which is subject in all cases to district audit
(s.
8
(3)).
Members of the council
(or
of
a constituent council in
3
The power
to
acquire land, either by agreement or compulsory purchase, is
given
by
s.
9 to the full council, in the case
of
county and county borough
forces, and to the authority in the caw of combined forces. Formerly, the
power to acquire land in the case of county forces was exercisable by the
council without discretion on the demand of the standing joint committee
(Wiltshire
C.C.
v.
Wiltshire
Standing
Joint
Committee
[1951]
2
K.B. 516).
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