POLICE AND CRIME COMMISSIONER TRANSFER
South Yorkshire Police Crime Commissioner transfer of powers to South Yorkshire Mayor to be debated in Parliament
Discussions began with government in early 2023, and now the Transfer Order will be debated in the House of Commons and the House of Lords before a final decision is made by March this year.
The Transfer Order sets out that all PCC functions would transfer to the Mayor of South Yorkshire and the separate role of Police and Crime Commissioner for South Yorkshire would be abolished in May 2024, when the current term comes to an end.
This would also mean a Mayoral election would take place 2 May 2024 and the successful elected candidate will become Mayor of South Yorkshire with Police and Crime Commissioner powers.
Overview
The Government’s Levelling Up White Paper published in 2022 outlined a commitment to enable Mayors to take on public safety functions including Police and Crime Commissioners, reiterating the key leadership role that combined authority mayors have in public safety and improving public health.
In response to this, the MCA Board and the Police and Crime Commissioner all agreed to write to the government to express their ambition for the Mayor to take on these functions.
So far there has been positive engagement and feedback from our local authority partners, regional stakeholders, the Home Office and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
The proposed changes were subject to a public consultation ran by the Home Office from 20th December 2023 – 31st Jan 2024.