Former Torbay Conservative councillor Mark Kingscote was hired by police and crime commissioner (PCC) Alison Hernandez last July to assist her whilst she dealt with leadership issues in the force.
The police and crime panel, which scrutinises her work, didn’t back Mr Kingscote’s appointment at July’s confirmation hearing. They said the formed the view that he didn’t “have sufficient experience that he would be unable to work on behalf of all residents of Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly…[or] meet the minimum requirements of the post.
They recommended he shouldn’t get the £59,000 a year job, but Ms Hernandez appointed him anyway.
Just months later, he has gone.
Ms Hernandez said in a letter to panel members that Mr Kingscote had resigned “due to personal circumstances”.
She hasn’t disclosed what those circumstances are, but in a letter to police and crime panel members, Ms Hernandez wrote: “I am particularly grateful for his assistance on scrutinising our estates’ plans, attending public and civic engagement events, the police museum and many other matters.”
She is not expecting to recruit another deputy in the near future.
When selecting Mr Kingscote, in the face of the strong recommendation of the police and crime panel against the appointment, Ms Hernandez claimed her deputy had “a unique set of skills” including working with people with complex mental health needs over his 30-year career in the NHS.
She said he would focus on issues such as anti-social behaviour issues in Torbay, while she concentrated on the leadership of an organisation “in dire straits”.
At the time of Mr Kingscote’s appointment, chief constable Will Kerr had been suspended over allegations of serious sexual assault in Northern Ireland, which he strenuously denies. Deputy chief constable Jim Colwell stepped up automatically to act as chief constable, but then was himself suspended in November last year over claims he misused his work phone.
Both the permanent chief constable and the acting chief constable are now subjects of separate investigations by the Independent Office of Police Conduct.
Last month Ms Hernandez appointed former chief of Dorset police James Vaughan as interim chief constable, saying the move would be welcomed by residents, police officers and staff.
Ms Hernandez has the power to appoint a deputy without the panel’s support but apologised to the panel after informing journalists of the appointment before notifying them.
The police and crime commissioner’s office says it will not comment about Mr Kingscote’s resignation as it is “a staff matter”.
Chair of the police and crime panel Cllr Sally Haydon (Lab, Plymouth City Council) said she is” surprised and disappointed, given all the motions we went through at the time”.
But she maintained the view she expressed last July that she would rather the deputy PCC’s salary be spent on “more bobbies on the beat”.
The role was expected to run for 12 months, with the option of extending it until 2028, when elections are next held for the police and crime commissioner, which is a political appointment. Ms Hernandez, a Conservative, was elected last year for the third time.
Minister not happy about Devon & Cornwall’s “one for the price of three” police chief costs – Owl
A Home Office minister has criticised the decision to pay three people a chief constable salary of £180,000 after two force bosses were suspended, calling it “not a good use of public money.” Lord Hanson of Flint voiced his concerns at Westminster after being informed about the upheaval at the top of Devon and Cornwall Police.
The police and crime commissioner for the force area had applied to the Home Office for a special grant to cover the escalating wage bill, Parliament heard. This comes amid worries over the length of time it takes for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) watchdog to investigate cases.
Chief Constable Will Kerr was suspended in July last year following the launch of an inquiry into “serious allegations of sexual offences” against him, which he has denied. He was replaced by Acting Chief Constable Jim Colwell, who was suspended last month pending an investigation into potential gross misconduct over claims he used his work mobile phone to exchange messages of a “personal nature”.
Former Dorset chief constable James Vaughan was recently appointed as interim boss of the Devon and Cornwall force. Amid the ongoing investigations, all three are being paid a chief constable salary.
According to The Telegraph the Chief Constable role commands a salary of roughly £180k a year, meaning it would cost at least £540,000 to pay for all three of them simultaneously, as Devon and Cornwall Police must do. The BBC has reported that former Chief Constable Will Kerr, currently under investigation, is on a salary of £197k, or £16,400 a month.
Raising the issue in the House of Lords during a question on the work of the IOPC, Tory former minister Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford said: “A situation has arisen in Devon and Cornwall where not one but two chief constables have been suspended on full pay pending investigation.
“I understand that the Police and Crime Commissioner has made an application for a special grant in order to cover the costs of full pay for three chief constables and as we have just heard the IOPC can take its time in these investigations. Can the minister say what approach he intends to take in this and similar situations going forward? “.
In response, Lord Hanson stated: “I do not have that information in front on me. I will report back to the police minister. I am not aware of the particular request from the Police and Crime Commissioner, but I will, if she will allow me, follow it up with my colleague the police minister and write to her.”
He further added: “Self-evidently having three salaries for a chief constable is not a good use of public money.” Earlier, non-affiliated peer Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate, a former chief superintendent, expressed one of the main complaints about the IOPC was the length of time investigations take. He noted: “Clearly this is causing some concern.”
Lord Hanson continued: “It is absolutely vital that investigations are done speedily, on time, are publicly accountable and their recommendations are implemented.” He revealed that the Government would be publishing police reform plans in the New Year, which would cover a range of issues including standards and the IOPC.
A spokesperson for Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez told The Telegraph: “She’s getting hacked off with politicians stating that this is somehow her fault. We have a situation where these men were accused of improper conduct and she, a woman, has taken action, yet she is getting the blame.”
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee is today (Thursday 19 December) launching a new inquiry, Reforming the Water Sector, to scrutinise the breadth of issues confronting the water sector.
The inquiry comes at a time when water companies are facing strong criticism for their environmental, financial and customer satisfaction performance, and a backlash for paying out large dividends to shareholders and bonuses to company executives.
The water sector faces important concerns such as weak resilience of water supply systems and future water security, while the UK’s water supplies are affected by a number of threats including agricultural and sewage pollution.
MPs will run this piece of work as a long-term inquiry which will see them take evidence in the coming months on a range of issues including the financial stability of the water sector, support for vulnerable consumers, water security, sewage overflows and agricultural pollution, and emergency responses to flooding, outages and drought.
The Committee will hold the first evidence session of this inquiry in January, where it will consider the impact of Ofwat’s final determination on how much water bills will be permitted to rise over the next five years. It will then take evidence from some of the worst performing water companies to determine what has gone wrong in the sector and how the Government can make improvements.
This new inquiry will examine the Government’s work taking place in this area, including the progress of the Water (Special Measures) Bill, and the work of the Government’s Independent Commission into the water sector, which is expected to report in mid-2025.
Chair comment
(The Rt Hon Mr Alistair Carmichael, Orkney & Shetland, Lib Dem)
“Over the past few years we have seen a strong backlash to water companies’ failings. Companies have breached environmental rules over sewage discharges while paying out huge dividends to shareholders, and big bonuses to executives, even as they have taken on ever more debt.
“In this inquiry our Committee will investigate the deep-rooted problems underlying the industry. The experience of sewage discharged into our rivers and seas, supply outages and outbreaks of contamination in domestic water supplies have all fed a deep dissatisfaction with the current performance of water companies.
“Our inquiry will delve into the complex structuring of water companies’ finances, examine the challenges of upgrading the sector’s aged infrastructure, and investigate the real impact people are feeling from increases to their water bills.
“We need a water system that is fit for the future. The Government and the regulator Ofwat urgently need to restore public confidence in the sector.”
Having proposed a 10% cut in their July draft decision!
So with one bound Susan Davy wins the jackpot! – Owl
As already reported by Owl, Ofwat has greed to let South West Water (SWW) hike its annual charges to customers from an average of £497 in 2024/5 to £610 by 2029/30, an increase of £113 or 22.7% at FY 24/5 prices (i.e. excluding inflation).
The regulator had originally proposed a much smaller increase of £64 or 12.9% in July but has been persuaded by SWW to change their minds. The final result is that Ofwat managed to shave only £14 or 2.2% from what SWW had proposed.
Note the figures above do not take into account the £50 per household government contribution in the South West area, which will be removed for 2025-26 onwards.
Significant changes from the draft decision for South West Water are:
• Ofwat increased their day-to-day expenditure allowances by £181 million to £2.3 billion for the South West area, and £43 million to £573 million for the Bristol area. This mainly reflects additional allowances for energy costs, business rates, bioresources growth and network reinforcement. Allowances for energy costs and business rates will be adjusted at the end of the price control period to reflect actual changes in prices.
• Ofwat increased their allowances to invest in new infrastructure and resources, by £106 million for the South West area and £17 million for the Bristol area. This mainly reflects better evidence provided by the company for its cost estimates and the need for investment. It also follows an increase in requested expenditure for the South West area, mostly driven by increased regulatory requirements. For both areas, Ofwat increased allowances for preventing raw water deterioration. This allowance also rises for investing in water interconnectors to improve resilience in the South West area.
• Ofwat changed some of their performance targets and financial incentive rates. This follows updated performance data for 2023-24, which Ofwat has taken into account in setting targets that are both stretching and achievable. For the South West area, Ofwat increased stretch on water quality contacts, as it is currently a relatively poor performer on this measure.
Ofwat says that they will continue to hold South West Water to account against its targets for improved service for customers and the environment and expect it to report on its performance every year. If the company does not deliver the expected outputs and outcomes, this will be reflected in lower bills for customers. Where it delivers a better level of performance, it will be allowed to collect more, to reflect the additional benefits to customers it has created.
NBthe Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has just found that Ofwat was failing to comply with the law as the regulator was not cracking down hard enough on water companies. The notice served said Ofwat was “failing to take proper account of environmental law with regards to duties on sewerage companies and its duty to make enforcement orders” and “failing to exercise its duty under environmental law to make enforcement orders”. – Owl
The Water (Special Measures) Bill is designed to give water company regulators new duties and powers to address pollution, poor financial management, and poor outcomes for customers.
The Bill will enable the government and regulators to block the payment of bonuses for water company executives, enable automatic and “severe” fines, and ensure the monitoring of every sewage outlet.
I am working on an amendment alongside Liberal Democrat colleagues to strengthen the Bill, which is still too weak in places.
South West Water has been fined millions of pounds for various environmental offences in the last few years, including for causing the deaths of thousands of fish in the River Axe.
There have been illegal sewage spills and breaches of environmental permits, as well as sewer collapses.
Ofwat’s annual performance report found that South West Water reported an 80 per cent year-on-year increase in serious pollution incidents with a whopping 111 such incidents per 10,000 km of sewer, during 2023-24.
Despite the eye-watering fines and the increase in reports of pollution, South West Water’s total dividend payout for 2024 was an incredible £126.9 million.
This was higher than the previous year’s payout of £111.7 million.
SWW chief executive, Susan Davy, now earns £860,000 after collecting a £298,000 shares bonus last year.
Ms Davy had “foregone” an annual bonus which would have been worth £237,000 in cash and shares, but still picked up the £298,000 long-term performance award.
So much for water company bosses being made to give up their bonuses following poor performance!
Much of this money would be more appropriately spent on essential repairs to the sewage network.
Last week I invited Susan Davy into Parliament to explain sewage spills along our coast – and the lack of transparency in SWW’s monitoring of such pollution.
I was disappointed that Ms Davy argued against monitoring spills on volume rather than on length of time.
Environmental groups tell me that this would be an easy measure to introduce, as well as being more revealing.
I consider that water companies should be made to introduce this increased transparency.
Water companies have been permitted to dump enormous volumes of sewage because the Conservative Government did not equip the regulators – the Environment Agency and Ofwat – to do their jobs properly.
We owe it to all those who enjoy spending time in our rivers and seas – and to our precious marine life – to get this Bill right, and I am working on it!
So could the water companies – but who will have to foot the bill for clearing up the mess from this scandalous failure? – Owl
The government, its water regulator and the Environment Agency could all be taken to court over their failure to tackle sewage dumping in England after a watchdog found failures to comply with the law.
An investigation by the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) found Ofwat, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Environment Agency (EA) all failed to stop water companies from discharging sewage into rivers and seas in England when it was not raining heavily. The OEP was set up in 2020 to replace the role the European Union had played in regulating and enforcing environmental law in the UK.
The law permits water companies to spill sewage only during exceptional circumstances such as extreme weather, but in reality human waste is routinely dumped in waterways even when it is not raining. Sewage is spilled into rivers and seas because in the UK there are combined sewage overflows (CSOs) into which water runoff from roads, sewage from homes and businesses, and “grey water” such as that from baths and washing machines all combine.
When this volume becomes too much and risks backing up into people’s homes, it is instead spilled into rivers and the sea. Water companies have failed over the years to update their sewage systems to stop this from happening, and the regulator and government both have legal duties to ensure the companies spill sewage only under extreme circumstances.
Helen Venn, the chief regulatory officer at the OEP, said: “The core issue identified in our investigation is the circumstances in which the regulatory system allows untreated sewage discharges to take place. We interpret the law to mean that they should generally be permitted only in exceptional circumstances, such as during unusually heavy rainfall. This is unless an assessment of the CSO concludes that the costs to address the issue would be disproportionate to the benefits gained.
“We will decide next steps when we have considered the responses to these decision notices. That could include court action.”
The OEP investigation followed the submission of a formal complaint two years ago by the campaign group WildFish.
Guy Linley-Adams, the in-house solicitor for WildFish, said: “What the OEP’s announcement has clarified is that much of the storm sewage pollution that is plaguing English rivers would not be occurring had government and regulators done their jobs properly. The Environment Agency must secure compliance with the 1994 regulations, which means it needs urgently to review the unlawful permits it has given to water companies to bring them into line with the law.”
Defra, Ofwat and the EA have each been sent a notice by the OEP outlining the findings and saying what steps each needs to take to put matters right. They have two months to respond and confirm whether they will take the steps required; if they do not do so, the watchdog could take them to court.
The investigation found Defra failed to comply with the law by drafting guidance for water companies and regulators that did not reflect the true legal extent of their duties not to stop sewage being spilled, and failing to make enforcement orders when waste was being dumped.
It also found Ofwat was failing to comply with the law as the regulator was not cracking down hard enough on water companies. The notice served said Ofwat was “failing to take proper account of environmental law with regards to duties on sewerage companies and its duty to make enforcement orders” and “failing to exercise its duty under environmental law to make enforcement orders”.
Ofwat is due to announce on Thursday how much water bills can rise by over the five years from next April.
The EA failed to comply with environmental law in three different ways, according to the OEP investigation. These include failing to take proper account of environmental law in devising guidance relating to permit conditions, setting permit conditions that were insufficient to comply with environmental laws and failing to exercise permit review functions in relation to discharges from CSOs. This meant the agency was found to be too lax in allowing water companies to spill sewage; they could not do so without a permit issued by the agency and the EA was allowed to review or revoke these if they were being inappropriately used.
An EA spokesperson said:“We recognise regulation of the water industry needs to improve, which is why we are transforming our approach with more people, powers and data alongside better training for our staff. This is ensuring we have a water system fit for people and the environment. We’ve also made significant progress in addressing the issues identified by the OEP and are consulting on updates to our permitting approach and regulatory framework for storm overflows.”
A spokesperson for Ofwat said: “We are actively taking steps to remedy the issues the OEP has identified. We will continue to prioritise our enforcement investigation into all wastewater companies which started in 2021 to ensure that companies are meeting their environmental obligations.”
A Defra spokesperson said: “For too long, water companies have pumped record levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas. In just 5 months, this Government has acted decisively to refresh outdated guidance to make extremely clear our expectations around storm overflows. We welcome the OEP’s acknowledgement that this government is rectifying the issues identified. We will carefully consider the OEP’s allegations of breaches before formally responding in due course.
“Furthermore, we’re placing water companies under special measures through the Water Bill, which includes new powers to ban the payment of bonusses for polluting water bosses and bring criminal charges against lawbreakers. We’re also carrying out a full review of the water sector to shape further legislation that will transform how our water system works.”
The government has also announced that water companies will be forced to double compensation for customers who experience tap water outages, sewage floods, boil water notices or low water pressure. Consumers will be automatically paid up to £2,000 under the new scheme.
This year, tens of thousands of homes in Brixham were left without clean drinking water after the parasite cryptosporidium was found in the supply. Many were told to boil water before using it for a month. Water companies have been accused of failing to properly compensate those who face these disruptions to their supply and damage from sewage flooding their homes.
The Devolution White Paper claims, without evidence, that there is an appetite for reorganisation. “Fewer politicians, with the right powers, will streamline local government to focus on delivering for residents. We will deliver this process as quickly as possible, including through legislation where it becomes necessary to ensure progress.” …..”New unitary councils must be the right size to achieve efficiencies, improve capacity and withstand financial shocks. For most areas this will mean creating councils with a population of 500,000 or more” [i.e. something bigger than half of Devon]
Not obvious to Owl that increasing the separation between the local electorate and politicians making local choices achieves devolution.
“Such streamlining could bring some benefits. Most people don’t grasp the different duties of the various government tiers (in rural areas this usually includes parish as well as district and county councils). But disrupting local democracy is not a thing to be done lightly, especially when public trust in politics is widely understood to be fragile. Organisational change directs huge amounts of energy inwards and there is no good evidence that larger councils are more effective. Ministers should be mindful of the towns and villages where a district council is the most visible elected body – and may also be different, politically, from the surrounding county. When larger councils are under colossal strain due to long-term underfunding of their social care obligations, there are benefits to keeping some services separate.”
Owl will have more to say on this in due course
Devon’s district councils and county council could merge
Devon County Council is expected to be merged with the eight district councils in the county
Devon County Council and the county’s eight district councils are expected to be merged into some form of a new unitary authority in the biggest shake-up of local government for decades.
It is not yet clear what will happen to Plymouth City Council and Torbay Council, which already stand apart with unitary status.
Elected mayors will be introduced in areas covering multiple authorities with the possibility of Devon and Cornwall being combined, following the announcement by Angela Rayner, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The government said it wanted to “streamline” local councils while critics have said the change could undermine local decision-making.
The local government picture is complicated in Devon with district councils and Exeter City Council responsible for areas like housing, local planning and waste collection and the county council responsible for highways, adult social care, children’s services and public health.
In Plymouth and Torbay the unitary authorities are responsible for all aspects of local government.
Devon County Council and Torbay Council, but not Plymouth City council, are already working together on a Combined County Authority (CCA) set up earlier in the year to have more control over areas such as skills training and public transport.
The measures in the English Devolution White Paper include proposals to create “strategic authorities” in the hope of “bringing together councils over areas that people live and work in”.
Paul Arnott, leader of East Devon District Council, said devolution would not cut costs
Paul Arnott, the Liberal Democrat leader of East Devon District Council, the largest district council in Devon, said he and other leaders were in favour of devolution but this had been badly managed.
He said: “This is being rushed, it hasn’t been consulted on and it risks throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
“District councils do a lot of good stuff already whether it’s protecting communities from the sea, emptying your bins, it’s your planning authority.
“They do a lot and I’m not convinced at the moment that the government really understand that in the ambition to push devolution down through the country they may actually be losing really well organised district councils.”
James McInnes, Conservative leader of Devon County Council, said it was “a big thing” for the district and county councils to think they might be “swept away”.
He said: “I’d prefer for us to find a way forward than have it be done to us by government.”
McInnes said all council finances were under “extreme pressure” and any move to unitary status would be “a distraction”.
He said: “I hope we can continue talking to each other and agree a way forward that will be right for the residents of Devon.”
McInnes said he was in regular talks with leaders in Cornwall, Torbay and Plymouth and that a strategic authority for Cornwall and Devon was a possibility – although he would prefer that to be led by a strategic board, rather than an elected mayor.
A map shows the district councils and the unitary authorities in Devon
Populations of district council areas, external range from the smallest of about 57,000 in West Devon to the largest of just over 150,000 in East Devon with about 130,000 people living in the Exeter City Council area.
Angela Rayner, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, said the policy would “see communities, people and places across England begin to take back control over the things that matter to them”.
She said every region of England would be covered by new “strategic authorities”, similar to the regions that currently have elected regional mayors.
Rayner said having directly-elected mayors would avoid duplication and give cities and regions a bigger voice.
The authority said a range of factors, which included agriculture run-off and new homes built in the area, contributed to the pollution in the river.
It said the funding would be used to “upgrade sewage treatment plants and septic tanks, as well as measures to prevent flooding” and “wetlands will also be constructed and water saving measures on council homes will be introduced”.
Councillor Paul Arnott, council leader, said “it will help us to unlock much needed new homes in Axminster” and “it will help us to act on our recent Declaration of a Nature Emergency, external“.
“The River Axe is of national importance for its biodiversity but has been in a very poor condition due to the phosphates that have been pouring into its waterway and harming the wildlife it supports.
“This funding will help us to address this urgent situation, enable delivery of the local plan and start to clean up one of East Devon’s most important rivers for wildlife.”
Councillor Todd Olive, portfolio holder for Strategic Planning at the council, said: “Nutrient pollution is an urgent and complex problem across England, where increased levels of nitrogen and phosphorous from a variety of sources – including both homes and agriculture – can have serious consequences for natural habitats and wildlife.
“While helpful in unlocking housebuilding projects currently blocked due to this pollution, first and foremost this funding will help protect our natural world, which is so crucial to East Devon in so many ways.”
Did you know that East Devon collects an impressive 250 tonnes of drinks cans each year? This weight is roughly equivalent to that of about 62 elephants!
In honour of Recycling Week (14th–20th October), East Devon District Council (EDDC) is excited to share the journey of your drinks can—from your home to the shop shelves.
Every recycled aluminium can, can be back on the shelves in a shop in just 60 days! Plus, drink cans can be recycled infinitely!
East Devon is currently ranked 6th in the country for recycling, with an impressive 60.5 per cent of household waste recycled. But we need your help to reach the top spot! By participating in Recycling Week 2024, you can make a big difference.
Here’s how: Just recycle 5 extra items each week. It could be Dee Dee the deodorant can, Rey the plastic spray bottle, Yogi the yogurt pot, Fitz the perfume bottle, or Hube, the humble toilet roll tube. Every small action counts and can help East Devon surpass the magic 65 per cent recycling mark!
Here’s what each item can be turned into and its impact:
Dee Dee the Deodorant Can: Recycle 12 extra deodorant cans a year (1 a month), and you’ll help create enough material to make a children’s bike frame!
Rey the Plastic Spray Bottle: By recycling 26 extra spray bottles a year (2 a month), you can contribute enough recycled material to produce a new plastic recycling bin for your community.
Yogi the Yogurt Pot: If you recycle 1 extra yogurt pot a week, that totals 52 pots a year, which can be transformed into enough material for up to 10 new plant pots or drainage pipes.
Fitz the Perfume Bottle: By recycling 24 extra perfume bottles a year (just 2 a month), you’ll contribute enough material to produce over 5,000 new glass containers! That’s enough to package a whole range of products, from cosmetics to food items—helping reduce waste and support the circular economy!
Hube, the Humble Toilet Roll Tube: By recycling four extra toilet roll tubes each week, you’ll contribute 208 tubes over the year—enough to produce 8 rolls of paper towels or create over 1,000 greeting cards for local schools!
To make recycling even easier, remember to:
Download the East Devon app for collection reminders and recycling tips
Use the Alexa recycling skill for instant advice
Sign up for green waste collection for just £52 a year
Beyond recycling, EDDC is encouraging residents to reduce the waste that they produce through more sustainable lifestyles. There are lots of ways to make more environmentally friendly choices, such as buying products which are reusable or have less packaging. Visit EDDC’s managing waste at home webpage for more advice.
Cllr Geoff Jung, EDDC’s portfolio holder for coast, country, and environment, said: “I am thrilled to see East Devon’s residents actively participating in recycling efforts. Collecting 250 tonnes of drinks cans annually is no small feat, and it highlights our community’s commitment to sustainability. This is just the tip of the iceberg. We recycle so much more than this.
“Our recycling and waste team go above and beyond every week to collect the huge volumes of recycling that wouldn’t be possible with the residents.
“As one of the highest achieving teams at EDDC, we would like to thank them for their efforts in keeping the authority as one of the best recyclers (currently 6th) in the country. As we mark Recycling Week, let’s all push a little bit more to support our recycling heroes and improve our efforts. Every can recycled contributes to a greener future for East Devon. Together, we can achieve great things!”
Susan Davy named and shamed this week in parliament
So said Ben Maguire Liberal Democrat Shadow Attorney General MP for North Cornwall during Wednesday’s parliamentary adjournment debate on Sewage discharges in the South West, which he introduced.
Here is the full quote:
Ben Maguire:
When I took my seat in this place, I promised my constituents that I would always speak truth to power. In a previous career, I advised businesses and their leaders. If I could offer some advice here and now to the chief executive of South West Water, I would say, “Please do the decent thing and go now.” In what other universe could a chief executive preside over such a record of abject failure? With Ms Davy having been the chief finance officer since 2015 and then the chief executive since 2020, almost 10 years of failed leadership have brought us to this diabolical situation. How on earth can anyone now have confidence that South West Water will miraculously turn things around in the next five years?
Ms Davy declined to take a bonus last year, instead adding that bonus amount to her base salary, which at last count was a whopping £860,000. Before Members start worrying about South West Water’s shareholders, they too were awarded a generous dividend of 44p per share. This is all while water bills are rocketing, childrenare getting severely sick as a result of that greed, and people everywhere are too afraid to enjoy the beaches and rivers that make Cornwall and the wider south-west so uniquely special. As a society, at what point do we come together and say that this has to stop, for the sake of our children and the sake of us all? Well, I humbly suggest that that point has now long passed.”
Emma Hardy – The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs replied:
South West Water’s environmental performance is clearly not good enough. It continues to be rated as requiring improvement in the Environment Agency’s environmental performance assessment, and it has the highest rate of incidents on its network in the sector. So far, as the hon. Gentleman said, there have been 20 pollution incidents in his constituency, and they are clearly unacceptable.
Where companies have failed in their statutory duties to maintain their assets properly and protect the local environment, regulators will take appropriate enforcement action. The Environment Agency has informed me that 24 charges against South West Water currently await a court hearing, and many of them relate to discharges in North Cornwall. Of course, it is inappropriate for me to comment further on these while those proceedings are ongoing.
However, I am reassured that the new powers in the Water (Special Measures) Bill, including those relating to the monitoring of emergency overflows—I quite enjoyed the idea that we could call EDMs electronic dance music instead, and maybe that is what I will be thinking of in the future—will assist the Environment Agency with workload and efficiency relating to these types of offences. Two new dedicated inspection teams have been in place since October this year. Once officers are trained, the annual number of inspections in the region will double from the 335 they will carry out this year. I think that is positive action that has been taken by the Environment Agency.
Both local MPs Richard Foord and David Reed spoke (Richard Foord a couple of times):
Richard Foord:
I am aware of the new storm overflow hub that the Minister talks about. My point is that sometimes the data that the new hub reveals is different to the data that the water companies are revealing on their apps, such as the South West Water WaterFit app. That was discovered by a constituent of mine in relation to Sidmouth last weekend.
To which the Minister replied:
I am more than happy to look into any anomalies, so if Members want to send through details of where there seems to be a discrepancy in the data, I can pick that up.
David Reed:
I thank Ben Maguire for securing this important debate. Many of the points that have been raised this evening are issues we have all experienced, but I have found that South West Water’s communication and engagement with its customers has been atrocious over recent months. What more can the Government do to ensure that South West Water properly engages with its customers?
To which the Minister replied:
I apologise to the hon. Gentleman for having to rearrange our meeting yesterday as I was visiting a flooded area. We will get that meeting back in the diary quickly. He is right to raise that issue as it is one of the reasons why we want to put customer representation on the water boards, and give customers that stronger voice. I am more than happy to follow that issue up with the hon. Gentleman and see what more I can do to support him. It is incredibly important that customers are treated with the respect they deserve, and if water companies are not doing that, I am more than happy to follow it up.
Owl recommends reading the whole transcript – doesn’t really solve anything but shows that our MPs are keeping up the scrutiny pressure on both South West Water and the Government
The Environment Agency (EA) has found ways of discarding “inconvenient” sampling data while South West Water (SWW) pumped untreated sewage water at Otter Heads over 3,000 times during May through September. The excuse is that a plan to resolve the issue by early autumn was agreed between EA and SWW. This work has yet to start.
Owl has no confidence in either the Environment Agency or South West Water.
The water quality at every bathing beach in the UK is sampled 20 times each Summer by the Environment Agency for E.Coli and other bacteria. The results of those samples define what water quality classification is awarded to that beach. Budleigh is rightfully proud of having been awarded ‘Excellent’ water quality status for the last 10 years.
Over that period, a number of samples were taken on a day when the Environment Agency had just published a ‘Pollution Risk Alert’, which is a warning that the water quality may be unsuitable for swimming. In all those cases, the sample taken on that day was included in the year-end water quality calculation.
If that ‘rule’ had been followed in 2024, Budleigh beach would definitely have lost our ‘Excellent’ status. In fact, with 40% of the most polluted samples from the last 4 years occurring in 2024, Budleigh’s water quality would now be 1/2 way between the ‘Good’ and ‘Sufficient’ categories.
To avoid that, the Environment Agency adopted a legal mechanism which allowed them to EXCLUDE two of the worst samples from their calculation. This was because those samples had been taken on a day when a ‘Pollution Risk Alert’ had been issued. In fact, there were 20 days between May and September when the EA issued one of these Pollution Warnings, it just so happened that the EA didn’t take a sample on most of those days.
As a result of excluding these two samples, the result was that Budleigh retained our ‘Excellent’ rating, but by the skinniest margin of just 2.5% away from dropping down a level.
One key factor in this is that throughout the May-September period, South West Water have been pumping a mix of untreated sewage and brook water from Lime Kiln pumping station out to Otter Head. In fact, SWW did this over 3,000 times in that period, with almost 20,000 litres being discharged every time. That’s equivalent to a 25m swimming pool full of untreated sewage mixed with stream water EVERY SINGLE DAY.
The original proposal was for SWW to start the work on quieter streets in July, and complete the task by early Autumn. For some reason, these dates seem to have moved back and back – and there is now no clear, published plan when this work will be completed. Clearly there are considerations over timing of disruption to some roads in the town, but it’s very difficult to understand why this work could not have been phased over the last 5 months.
It’s not just an issue for South West Water, though they do carry the shame of having let the situation get this bad. It’s also a matter for our elected politicians to prioritise clearance for this work, and get the issue fully resolved.
It’s bad enough for Budleigh residents and visitors to have to play sewage-roulette each time they want to swim, but when there is a clear and defined solution to this issue, it’s unforgivable that this has not been resolved.
The acting chief constable of Devon and Cornwall police, Jim Colwell, has been suspended pending an investigation into allegations of breaching professional standards.
The region’s police and crime commissioner, Alison Hernandez, has made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which has confirmed it will investigate the allegations.
Hernandez said she would announce interim leadership arrangements in due course.
She said: “Sadly it has been my duty to suspend A/CC Jim Colwell and refer this matter to the IOPC. Suspension is a neutral act to enable an independent and thorough investigation to take place. It has no bearing on any indication that the allegations will be upheld and should not be seen as such. A/CC Colwell has seven days to make representations to me relating to his suspension.
“As required for any suspension of a senior officer, I have this morning informed the Devon and Cornwall police and crime panel of my decision and fully understand that there may be concerns within the force, in our communities and with our partners in relation to this suspension. I share those concerns and resolving leadership issues in the force remains my most pressing priority.”
Colwell was leading the force in place of the chief constable, Will Kerr, who was suspended in July last year.
In September Devonlive reported that South West Water owner Pennon had announced rising cases of sewage spills and a hit of about £16 million from the parasite contamination crisis in Devon earlier this year.
The group said it racked up the costs from the contamination incident in Brixham, after paying compensation to affected households, providing bottled water for two months, and after “extensive” action to clean the network.
Now South West Water has pledged £1.2m to help tourism:
A £1.2m fund to help boost tourism and repair “reputational damage” after a cryptosporidium outbreak in south Devon has been described as “desperately important”.
South West Water (SWW) has pledged the money as part of a Destination Marketing Recovery Fund following the water parasite outbreak in May that saw about 100 confirmed cases of the diarrhoea-type illness in and around Brixham.
Business leaders said the incident caused 3,500 pieces of negative coverage across the world, as well as tens of millions of pounds worth of lost bookings.
Much of the money was due to be spent on television advertising, they added.
“The headlines were appalling,” said Chris Hart, chairman of the English Riviera BID Company.
He said: “We were able to demonstrate to SWW that there were around 3,500 pieces of negative coverage about Brixham and the wider Devon area, not just here but across the world.
“Our research showed that around £34m of bookings were lost at the time of the outbreak, with an estimate £6m in future bookings also lost.”
Much of the money would be spent on a national TV advertising campaign, with one advert already in production, he said.
He added: “The aim now is to use the funding to repair the reputational damage that has been caused, and to present Brixham and the English Riviera in a really positive light, showing off the great area this is.”
Business in the area said they were confident the latest funding would help address the situation.
“It’s going to open up channels of marketing we currently can’t afford, such as television advertising,” said Alex Foley, who runs the Guardhouse Café at Berry Head.
“It will allow us to reach many more potential customers and show how great the area is.”
“This is desperately important,” said Linda Lowe, who owns Brookside Guesthouse in Brixham.
She said: “The only way we can get our reputation back in the public eye is to get the marketing out quickly… a massive advertising campaign showing just how beautiful it is here.”
Of the £1.2m pledged by SWW, about £250,000 is also due to be spent on a legacy project in Brixham, which is being delivered by the local Chamber of Commerce.
South West Water said: “It’s important to us that we do what we can to support local businesses and the community in Brixham.”
It added: “The fund will help promote tourism in Brixham and the surrounding area in partnership with the English Riviera BID.”
This explainer was commissioned by NHS England. It was independently developed, researched and written by the authors and all views are the authors’.
What is NHS dentistry?
NHS dentistry provides treatment that is clinically necessary to keep mouths, teeth and gums healthy and free of pain and includes primary, community, secondary and tertiary dental services. In 2021/2022 the NHS contribution to dentistry was about £2.3 billion.
How is NHS primary care dentistry organised?
Primary dental services are one of the four pillars of the primary care system in England, along with general practice, primary ophthalmic services (eye health) and community pharmacy. These services use a ‘contractor’ model of care, which means that almost all NHS primary care services are delivered by independent providers contracted to the NHS.
There are around 11,000 independent dental provider practices in England, private businesses that provide a mix of both NHS and private dental care. About three-quarters of these hold contracts to provide NHS services. These practices might be dentists working as individuals or in partnerships or small businesses, although there are also a small number of large corporate dental providers. Dental providers who have a contract to provide NHS funded dental services can also offer private treatment to their patients. All dental practices must be registered with the Care Quality Commission.
There is no national registration system in dentistry like there is in general practice. People do not need to be registered with a dentist to receive NHS care and should be able to go to any dental practice that holds an NHS contract for treatment, without any geographical or boundary restrictions. Dental practices can choose whether they provide NHS treatment to new patients depending on whether they have capacity under the terms of their contract (see below).
Once a patient is accepted for an assessment of their treatment needs the practice cannot refuse to complete the course of treatment. Once the treatment is completed, the dental practice does not have ongoing responsibility for their dental care, though some NHS treatments, such as fillings, crowns and inlays, are covered by a 12-month guarantee. Dental practices have patients they regard as ‘regular attenders’ for the purposes of planning recall appointments. Dental practitioners can prescribe any items listed in the dental practitioners’ formulary, and can issue both NHS and private prescriptions.
Community dental services provide dental care for patients (adults and children) with more specialist needs. This might include people who need services such as general anaesthetics or sedation, orthodontics, or adults and children with particular needs such as physical or learning disabilities, medical conditions, people who are housebound and people experiencing homelessness. Community dental services are provided in a range of settings including mobile clinics, people’s own homes or care homes, hospitals and specialist health centres.
Most secondary care dentistry is provided by NHS hospitals, including the 10 NHS specialist dental hospitals in England. It includes services such as complex oral surgery, oral and maxillofacial pathology, dental and maxillofacial radiology. Secondary and tertiary care dental providers have an important role in providing dentistry training and may also provide emergency primary care dentistry.
How is NHS dentistry commissioned and contracted?
From 2013 to March 2023 NHS England was responsible for commissioning primary and secondary dental care in England, a process led by the primary care commissioning team. From April 2023 integrated care boards (ICBs) took over responsibility for commissioning primary, secondary and community dental services. The change from NHS England to ICBs is intended to enable commissioning and provision of dental care that meets the particular needs of local populations and addresses inequalities oral health and in access to care. Local commissioners use national commissioning standards and guidance to assess local needs, set a minimum standard for services and ensure outcomes and quality measures are included in service specifications and contracts. In order to provide NHS dental services, providers need to hold one of the following NHS contracts.
General dental services (GDS) contracts
These contracts are the most commonly used for NHS primary care dental services and do not usually have an end date. The GDS contract covers ‘mandatory dental services’, which are routine and clinically necessary urgent treatments needed to keep the mouth, teeth and gums healthy and free of pain. GDS contracts can also cover more specialist services, known as ‘advanced mandatory services’ and ‘additional services’, which include more complex extractions, home visits or sedation.
Personal dental services (PDS) contracts
PDS contracts cover specialist primary services such as sedation, orthodontics or home visits but can also include mandatory dental services and are usually time limited for a period of about five years. They make up about 15% of NHS dentistry contracts. A PDS Plus contract was introduced in 2008 and has a different payment mechanism including payments for meeting certain performance indicators such as re-attendance rates. The National Audit Office reported that in March 2020 there were only 36 PDS Plus contracts in place in England.
Other dental care services are commissioned in the following ways
Urgent dental care services
While urgent dental care to patients who are undergoing a course of treatment at the practice within a practice’s normal working hours is provided as part of the GDS contract, other urgent dental care, including out-of-hours care, may be commissioned separately from a range of providers. Patients usually access this type of care by contacting NHS 111 for triage and are then referred to a local provider.
Community dental services (CDS)
Community dental services provide dental care for patients (adults and children) with more specialist needs. This might include people who need services such as general anaesthetics or sedation, orthodontics, or adults and children with particular needs such as physical or learning disabilities, medical conditions, people who are housebound and people experiencing homelessness. Community dental services are provided in a range of settings including mobile clinics, individual homes or residential homes, hospitals, and specialist health centres. Community dental services are usually commissioned from NHS trusts but may also be commissioned from other suitably qualified providers under PDS or GDS contracts.
Secondary care dentistry provided in NHS hospitals
Secondary care dentistry is commissioned from NHS hospitals under the standard NHS contract.
How is payment calculated?
Units of dental activity (UDAs)
Under the GDS contract, payments for primary care dentistry are made for units of dental activity (UDAs), up to a maximum negotiated annual contract value agreed in each dental provider’s contract. There are six bands of treatment, which attract different numbers of UDAs.
Under the GDS contract each provider agrees to provide a set number of units of dental activity (UDAs), for an agreed price from 1 April until 31 March the following year, with the total value of the contract paid in monthly instalments. If the provider does not achieve 96% delivery of their contract activity at year end, following an annual reconciliation process, money for the care that has not been delivered may be recovered by the commissioner.
Band
Number of UDAs
Includes
Band 1
1
Examination, diagnosis and advice
Band 2a
3
Everything in band 1, plus additional treatment such as fillings, root canals and extractions
*Band 2b
5
Everything in bands 2 where there are three or more fillings/extractions in one course of treatment and/or non-molar root canal treatment to permanent teeth
*Band 2c
7
Everything in band 2 plus molar endodontic care to permanent teeth.
Band 3
12
Everything in band 2 plus more complex treatment such as crowns, dentures and bridges
Urgent
1.2
Examination, assessment, advice and urgent treatment
*Introduced in October 2022.
The first phase of dental contract reform was completed in July 2022. Changes included the introduction of enhanced UDAs to better reflect the cost of providing more complex treatments currently remunerated under Band 2 and introducing a new national minimum value for each UDA across England. Providers will now be able to be reimbursed for up to 110% of their contract value on a non-recurrent basis, subject to agreement with the commissioner. The reforms also promote longer gaps between checkups for those with good oral health, and have made it easier to use the full range of dental health professionals more effectively to deliver services.
Patient charges
Patient charges for NHS dentistry were introduced in 1951. The money from patient charges is collected by dental practices but is passed to the NHS and in 2021/2022 amounted to £633 million. Some patients are exempt from dental charges including children, pregnant women and new mothers, and those receiving certain low-income benefits. There are no patient charges for secondary and tertiary care dentistry.
Band
Patient charges at April 2023
Includes
Band 1
£25.80
Examination, diagnosis and advice
Band 2
£70.70
Everything in band 1, plus additional treatment such as fillings, simple root canals and extractions and simple changes to dentures
Band 3
£306.80
Everything in band 2 plus more complex treatment such as crowns, mouthguards, dentures and bridges
Urgent
£25.80
Emergency appointments or urgent treatment that cannot be postponed
About 85% of the dental workforce work in independent general dental practices. Others work in NHS community services or hospitals.
The normal route to become a qualified dentist is to complete a degree (either BDS or BChD), which is usually a five-year course. Dentists must then register with the General Dental Council before they can practise. Dental graduates trained in the UK then usually undertake dental foundation training for a year, working under supervision in a practice approved by NHS England. Once this is completed they can apply to join the NHS performers list for England if they wish to provide NHS primary care dental services. They may also choose to do further training, known as dental core training, for between one and three years, mostly in dental teaching hospitals, special care and community dental clinics and acute hospitals. This may be followed by a further three to five years of dental specialty training.
Dentists who have qualified overseas need to pass the overseas registration exam to register with the General Dental Council, and if they wish to provide NHS primary care dentistry they must also apply to join the NHS performers list.
Other registered dental care professionals working for a dental provider may also provide NHS services once they have completed the appropriate training set out by the General Dental Council. Recent reforms allow dental therapists and other dental care professionals in a dental practice to assess patients, diagnose common conditions and provide treatment or refer on to a dentist when more complex treatment might be required, rather than patients needing to see a dentist first.
Challenges
Access to NHS dentistry is a significant challenge. In the British Social Attitudes Survey in 2022, satisfaction with NHS dentistry fell to a low of 27% and dissatisfaction increased to a high of 42%. 24% of respondents said they were ‘very dissatisfied’ with NHS dentistry – a higher proportion than for other health and care services asked about in the survey. Healthwatch England reports that patients frequently raise issues around access to dentistry, and that 7 of 42 integrated care boards reported that they had no dental practices taking new adult NHS patients that they had not previously treated. While people can theoretically be treated by any dentist with an NHS contract, data from 2022 found that people who had been to a particular practice before were much more successful in getting an NHS dental appointment than those who were not previously known to the practice (82% compared with 32%). Younger adults and people from minority ethnic groups were had the lowest levels of success in accessing appointments. A report by BBC News and the British Dental Association in August 2022 found 9 in 10 NHS dental practices across the UK were not accepting new adult patients for NHS treatment.
As well as difficulties in securing an appointment, there are wide disparities in the availability of dental practices providing NHS services. There is also a significant geographical variation in the supply of dentists, with dentists concentrated in cities and around dental hospitals and schools. In addition, the number of dentists willing to provide NHS services is falling.
Particular groups of the population are at risk of poorer dental health and worsening health inequalities. Research has shown that people in more deprived areas and those in vulnerable groups such as, homeless people, looked after children and people from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, face particular difficulties accessing dental care. In addition, over the past 10 years the number of children with dental decay has risen significantly, particularly for those in the highest areas of deprivation.
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on primary care dentistry. Routine dentistry was completely suspended for several months in 2020. In January 2022 the government announced the investment of £50 million to provide an additional 35,000 urgent dental care appointments to help to drive services back to pre-pandemic levels.
The dental recovery plan was published in February 2024 under the previous government and aims to increase access to NHS dentistry services. The £200 million plan was intended to deliver more than 1.5 million additional NHS dentistry treatments (or 2.5 million appointments) in 2024-25 and has three components.
The additional courses of treatment in 2024-25 were intended to come from the first of these components, through four headline initiatives:
mobile dental vans to deliver some dental services to targeted communities
a new patient premium, in which participating dental practices receive a credit of units of dental activity (UDAs) equivalent to £15 or £50 (depending on the course of treatment) for eligible new patients
‘golden hello’ recruitment incentives of £20,000 (phased over three years) for 240 dentists to work in areas with recruitment and retention challenges in NHS dentistry
an uplift to the minimum value of a UDA to £28. [The amount that the UDA is worth is not fixed across the country or even local areas so NHS dentists get paid different amounts from place to place but is typically around £28. – Owl]
Scope of the report
This report sets out information on the current delivery of NHS dentistry services and the development and progress of the plan for 2024-25. It does not seek to examine and report on the overall value for money of the programme, but we offer some reflections on what the government might want to consider as it develops its future plans for NHS dentistry. It looks at:
access to NHS dentistry before the plan
development of the 2024 dental recovery plan
the government’s progress against the dental recovery plan’s objectives and plans for evaluation
Conclusions
The dental recovery plan aspires to deliver more than an additional 1.5 million courses of treatment in 2024-25 but is not currently on course to do so. Even if these additional courses of treatment are delivered by the end of 2024-25, the plan would still mean that 2.6 million fewer courses of treatment would have been delivered than in 2018-19.
DHSC and NHSE should look to reflect on what has worked in this plan and build upon that as they look to deliver the meaningful reform of the dental contract that they have alluded to.
A proper evaluation of this plan will be needed, as well as a review of whether they have sufficient reporting processes in place to make sure that they are getting back from ICBs the data they need to monitor progress with any future plan. They will need to assess how they engage with ICBs and dental practices who are responsible for delivering NHS dentistry in local areas.
From the detail
There are several issues, beyond just the impact of the pandemic, that are contributing to a lack of access to NHS dentistry:
• The dental contract is in need of reform
• Insufficient provision of NHS dentistry.
• Overall spending on primary care NHS dentistry has fallen in real terms,
The national NHS Dental Recovery Plan, which launched in February, created a £20,000 ‘golden hello’ incentive to recruit NHS dentists to areas that have historically struggle to recruit them or to retain them in the face of competition from private practice.
Funding for a total of up to 240 dentists across England was made available by the government.
Devon secured 17 of those, an allocation it was awarded in October.
But in nearly two months of the scheme running, just one dentist has taken the incentive in Devon.
The scheme does have certain stipulations, namely that dentists need to remain in post for three years to receive the full £20,000.
The state of dentistry in Devon was the subject of a debate in Westminster Hall this month, with Richard Foord MP (Liberal Democrat, Honiton and Sidmouth), stating the South West was a “special case” and that some of his constituents who needed treatment were only able to find available appointments 80 miles from their homes.
Mr Foord said 51 per cent of adults in the South West had access to a dentist in 2015, the same as the national average, but that these figures had now fallen to 40 per cent for England and 34 per cent for Devon.
The pressure on the sector has been exacerbated by the fact Devon now only has 497 dentists compared to 549 in 2020.
A spokesperson for NHS Devon said it was too early to know how the level of take-up of the ‘golden hello’ scheme compared with other counties.
Asked if the scheme would help it secure the number of dentists it wanted, the spokesperson said the organisation did not usually set specific targets for recruiting NHS dentists.
“We are focused on working with our providers to improve access to dental care and meet local oral health needs,” the spokesperson said.
“Recruitment efforts are shaped by challenges such as national dentist shortages and the difficulty of retaining NHS dentists due to workload and contract issues.
“Instead of fixed recruitment goals, we aim to achieve reduced unmet dental needs by using strategies like contract flexibility or incentives, such as the golden hello, to attract dentists, particularly in underserved areas.”
Explains what the recovery plan seeks to do and what isn’t working – such as the basic contract needs fundamental reform and expenditure on dentistry has fallen in real terms.
NAO concludes the plan is unlikely to deliver an additional 1.5 million treatments by March 2025. Even if this target was achieved, it would still mean 2.6 million fewer treatments compared to before the pandemic.
An explanation of the Byzantine complexity of the the current NHS dentistry system in England, commissioned by the NHS and published by The Kings Fund in October 2023.
In Owl’s opinion, only a hard core bureaucrat could dream up something like this, so we shouldn’t be surprised that it doesn’t work!
Devon and Cornwall police and crime commissioner (PCC) Alison Hernandez has apologised to the panel that scrutinises her work for talking to the media before formally notifying them of her decision to appoint a deputy.
The Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel voted to recommend the PCC did not appoint her chosen candidate Mark Kingscote at a meeting on July 19 as he “did not meet the minimum requirements for the role”.
But Ms Hernandez, who has the power to recruit a deputy without the panel’s support, said she did not accept the recommendation and spoke to journalists after the meeting saying she would be appointing Mr Kingscote with immediate effect.
Five councillors on the panel said a press release from the commissioner’s office was also issued within hours of the meeting before she had received official confirmation of the panel’s recommendation.
They said it was “discourteous” that more than two weeks passed before Ms Hernandez advised the panel of her intention to appoint Mr Kingscote and that her actions had brought the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) “into disrepute by showing total disrespect for the panel and the decision it made”.
At an extraordinary meeting of the panel last Friday called to discuss the issue, members voted to accept the commissioner’s apology over what she said appeared to be “a misunderstanding”.
Ms Hernandez said she recognised that by speaking to the media, her decision was communicated to the public before her office had formally recorded the decision and before she had notified the panel but as she was in the council chamber to hear the debate she did not feel the need to wait for the panel’s written confirmation.
She said there had been an administrative delay with the publication of her own decision notice which was “regrettable”.
She did not accept that her actions had brought the office into disrepute as it had all been done “legally and with best intention”.
After the meeting she said: “The one thing I do not want to do is insult the police and crime panel. They are there to support me in carrying out my role as a commissioner and also to scrutinise my actions and decisions to make sure I am doing things in the right way.
“I was probably a bit too hasty in my promotion of my deputy so I am happy to apologise for any misunderstanding about what process should have been followed. It was never written down, neither side was clear, so next time we will make sure we are.”
Ms Hernandez worked with Mark Kingscote for 15 years when they were both Conservative councillors in Torbay.
She said he had a “unique set of skills”, including working with people with complex mental health needs over a 30-year career in the NHS, to focus on the problems on the ground while she helped the leadership of the organisation, which had been without a chief constable since July 2023.
Chief constable Will Kerr is under investigation for sexual assault allegations by the Public Prosecution Service of Northern Ireland (PONI), which he strenuously denies.
The Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel said they did not believe Mr Kingscote, who Ms Hernandez had previously tried to recruit in 2017, had the right experience for the £59,000 a year job.
The role is expected to run for 12 months, with the option to extend to the end of the current electoral term in 2028.
East Devon Watch 