Philip Allott’s successor to be elected on November 25

Philip Allott’s successor as North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner will be elected on Thursday November 25.

Selby District Council, which is running the election, announced the date today.

Candidates must be nominated by October 29 and the their names will be published on November 1.

A briefing for prospective candidates and agents will take place at 4pm on Monday next week.

Voters will go to the polls just six months after Mr Allott, from Knaresborough, was elected to the £74,000-a-year role.

He resigned on Thursday following comments about the Sarah Everard kidnap, rape and murder by a serving Met Police officer.

Councillors passed a motion of no confidence in his leadership and fellow Conservative politicians, including Ripon MP Julian Smith, called for him to resign.

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In May’s election, the Conservative Mr Allott received 84,737 first and second preference votes.

Labour’s Alison Hume, who received 53,442 total votes, was runner-up.

Ms Hume said on Twitter last week she was “relieved” Mr Allott had resigned but it is not known yet if she will be the Labour candidate again.

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are also yet to announce their candidates.

Independent Keith Tordoff, who also stood in May’s election and received 22,338 first preference votes, told the Stray Ferret he intends to stand again.

Have your say on police priorities for Harrogate district

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott has today opened a three-month consultation seeking views on what the priorities should be for the police and fire services.

Mr Allott, who was elected commissioner in May, said the responses would inform his Police and Crime Plan, and Fire and Rescue Plan for 2021-2024.

Mr Allott, who lives in Knaresborough, will go on a 16-stop tour of North Yorkshire and York to canvas views. Online surveys and focus groups will also feed into the survey.

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He said:

“These documents which we need to produce by law have long titles and complex requirements, but they are all about one thing – your safety, which is why I want to know your priorities to ensure they are your plans.

“Please get involved in this consultation and have your say. I promise it will be listened to.”

The Police and Crime Plan sets out the vision and priorities for North Yorkshire Police, community safety and victims’ rights, as well as the objectives and ambitions that the Chief Constable will be held to account against.

The Fire and Rescue Plan sets out the strategic vision, priorities and objectives for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service for how it will better respond to the need of our communities.

Further details of the consultation and the draft plans are available at www.tellphilip.co.uk.

Crime commissioner defends local MP for voting against dog theft law

North Yorkshire Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner Philip Allott has defended fellow Conservative, Harrogate & Knaresborough’s Andrew Jones MP, after he voted in Parliament against making dog theft a specific offence.

Mr Allott repeatedly called for the crime to be put into law during his recent campaign to become the new commissioner.

As part of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill that is currently going through the Commons, the Labour Party put forward an amendment that would have for the first time made dog theft a crime.

Currently, the law doesn’t distinguish the theft of a dog from that of an inanimate object.

MPs voted the amendment down on Monday with a majority of 113. Four Tory MPs rebelled against the government.

Mr Allott told the Stray Ferret that he wouldn’t have voted for the amendment if he was an MP.  He said this was because the government is currently consulting on its own law which he believes will be tougher on criminals than the one Labour suggested.

He said:

“I strongly support a law for pet theft, but I want to wait for the consultation”.

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Mr Allott, who lives in Knaresborough, previously highlighted a survey showing dog thefts increased by 250% last year due to gangs cashing in on the demand for puppies during lockdown.

Sought-after breeds, such as French bulldogs, can sell for more than £5,000 and a litter can fetch £35,000.

Mr Allott accused Labour of “mischief-making” and said the offence could include cats as well as dogs.

He added:

“I’ll be interested to see Andrew Jones’s understanding on this but he does care about pets. He did the right thing waiting”.

The Stray Ferret asked Mr Jones to comment but did not receive a response.