PC who resigned would have been sacked for child sex offences
Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Jones said: "We will continue to rid West Mercia Police of individuals who have no place in our force and hold them to account to ensure they can never work in policing again."Bunting seriously breached not only the standards of professional behaviour, but he broke the law. He has rightly faced the repercussions of his actions."Bunting was an officer based at Kidderminster Police Station and worked as a Cadet Leader for North Worcestershire Volunteer Police Cadets.A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: "Bunting seriously breached the professional standards of behaviour by discreditable conduct, by bringing the force in disrepute through his actions while off duty."An accelerated misconduct hearing found that he would have been dismissed from the force had he not already resigned."The former officer has also been added to the College of Policing Barred List preventing him from ever working for a UK police service in the future.
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Telegraph
14 minutes ago
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Councils to buy empty homes to house migrants under government plans
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The moves come as police are braced for fresh protests against asylum hotels this weekend, following the 16 arrests for violence at the Bell hotel in Epping, Essex, amid anger at an alleged sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl by a 38-year-old migrant from Ethiopia. Some 32,000 asylum seekers are being housed in around 210 hotels, according to the latest Home Office data from March. This compares with just under 30,000 in June last year, days before Labour won the election, but down from the peak of 56,000 at 400 hotels in September 2023 at a cost of £9m a day. On Friday, the Home Office announced that asylum seekers face being made homeless if they refuse orders by officials to move out of hotels into alternative accommodation. Hundreds of migrants refuse to be transferred every week, according to the Home Office, which is frustrating attempts to reduce the number of asylum hotels. Some hotels have been forced to remain in use for as few as three migrants due to refusals to move out. Now, asylum seekers will be threatened with losing their taxpayer-funded accommodation and weekly £49.18 allowance if they reject a transfer request for a second time under a new 'firm-but-fair' policy to reduce the number of asylum hotels. The search for alternative accommodation has become a priority as a record 24,000 migrants have crossed the Channel so far this year, up 50 per cent. On top of 80,000 outstanding initial asylum claims in March, there is a growing backlog of 41,000 failed asylum seekers who have appealed against the decision, with many requiring housing. Sir Keir Starmer set out the Government's approach this week, when he told the liaison committee: 'A central focus of what we are doing is what can be built, arranged or taken by councils and repurposed. I am impatient for this change to be driven through. 'We have to take over other accommodation, and we have to drive down the asylum lists. There is no alternative... There is lots of housing in many local authorities that can be used, and we are identifying where it can be used.' Dame Angela Eagle, the border security and asylum minister, told MPs the aim was to 'evolve' away from a 'commercial' approach using private accommodation contractors to a 'more democratically accountable' system in partnership with local councils. It comes ahead of 'break' clauses next year where the Home Office could end its reliance on three contractors – Clearsprings, Mears and Serco – to find accommodation for asylum seekers. Around 200 councils have 'expressed interest' in running pilot schemes partnering with the Government. 'The pilots are looking at various ways to provide accommodation, for example, putting a grant to local authorities and leasing back the property. There are elements of: could we give grants to remediate void properties?' said Joanna Rowland, the Home Office's director general for customer services. 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BBC News
14 minutes ago
- BBC News
Ex-Lincolnshire PC shared bodycam footage of him tasering man
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BBC News
14 minutes ago
- BBC News
Devon and Cornwall Police deny crime commissioner's bodies claim
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