Crime data fiddling ‘not endemic’ in Herts

Crime data fiddling “is not endemic” within Herts police a senior officer has claimed.

The county’s police and crime commissioner David Lloyd asked Chief Constable Andy Bliss to look into the issue in the wake of national concern, and now the findings of the review have been published.

A letter from Herts Constabulary’s Deputy Chief Constable Alison Roome-Gifford revealed she shared commissioner Lloyd’s “concern that confidence in the reporting and recording of crime is crucial”.

But she stated she did not think officers intentionally kept crimes off the books.

“Acting with professionalism and integrity is at the core of the constabulary’s ethos and I set clear standards for ethical and professional recording of crime and I have a high level of confidence in our statistics,” wrote the deputy chief constable.

“Unethical decision making is not endemic within the constabulary.

“Mistakes are made but this is through inexperience, naivety or misunderstanding of the complexities of the [National Crime Recording Standard].”

The letter has been published by the Hertfordshire Police and Crime Panel ahead of a meeting tomorrow (Thursday), which will discuss the issue.

The agenda for the meeting states: “There is a suggestion that target setting has caused a degree of false or adapted reporting in some areas.”

Off the back of concerns raised nationally by senior MPs and former top officers, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary is looking at forces’ crime recording systems.

Herts Constabulary will be examined in March.