Greater Manchester Police Chief Backs Sweeping Reforms for US-style National Crime Agency
Manchester — The head of one of the UK’s largest police forces has thrown his weight behind radical government plans to overhaul the structure of policing in England and Wales, describing the proposed changes as overdue.
Sir Stephen Watson, the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, has publicly endorsed proposals from Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to streamline the country’s fragmented police forces into a centralised National Police Service (NPS). The proposed agency is expected to draw inspiration from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States, tasked with tackling major and cross-border crimes.
Under the current framework, England and Wales are policed by 43 separate forces, each operating under the oversight of individual Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs). Sir Stephen argued that this decentralised model is increasingly ill-suited to the realities of modern crime.
"There is something genuinely old fashioned about policing services that reflect a world that is no longer as it might have been 50 or 60 years ago", Sir Stephen said in a statement supporting the overhaul.
He criticised the existing system as not efficient or effective, particularly in the face of increasingly mobile and digital criminal networks that operate without regard for traditional county borders.
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It was found that the current structure, with 43 forces reporting to 43 different Police and Crime Commissioners, creates fragmentation that hinders the ability to respond to national threats.
The proposed National Police Service would look to unify resources to combat complex, high-level criminality, including cybercrime, organised gangs, and terrorism. While Sir Stephen emphasised that neighbourhood policing remains a vital component of community safety, he argued that national threats require a cohesive, modern response that the current patchwork of forces struggles to deliver.
In addition to structural changes, the government’s reform package includes granting the Home Secretary greater powers, potentially including the authority to sack chief constables. Sir Stephen signaled his acceptance of this shift toward tighter political oversight, describing himself as, "reasonably relaxed", about the prospect.
He suggested that such measures would simply reflect a necessary increase in democratic accountability, ensuring that police leadership remains aligned with public priorities and government strategy.
The backing of Sir Stephen, a prominent and often outspoken figure in British policing, lends significant weight to the Home Secretary’s ambitions. As the government moves to formalise these proposals, the endorsement of such a high-ranking officer suggests a growing consensus that the current policing architecture requires a fundamental reset to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
Sir Stephen Watson, the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, has publicly endorsed proposals from Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to streamline the country’s fragmented police forces into a centralised National Police Service (NPS). The proposed agency is expected to draw inspiration from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States, tasked with tackling major and cross-border crimes.
Under the current framework, England and Wales are policed by 43 separate forces, each operating under the oversight of individual Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs). Sir Stephen argued that this decentralised model is increasingly ill-suited to the realities of modern crime.
"There is something genuinely old fashioned about policing services that reflect a world that is no longer as it might have been 50 or 60 years ago", Sir Stephen said in a statement supporting the overhaul.
He criticised the existing system as not efficient or effective, particularly in the face of increasingly mobile and digital criminal networks that operate without regard for traditional county borders.
.jpg)
It was found that the current structure, with 43 forces reporting to 43 different Police and Crime Commissioners, creates fragmentation that hinders the ability to respond to national threats.
The proposed National Police Service would look to unify resources to combat complex, high-level criminality, including cybercrime, organised gangs, and terrorism. While Sir Stephen emphasised that neighbourhood policing remains a vital component of community safety, he argued that national threats require a cohesive, modern response that the current patchwork of forces struggles to deliver.
In addition to structural changes, the government’s reform package includes granting the Home Secretary greater powers, potentially including the authority to sack chief constables. Sir Stephen signaled his acceptance of this shift toward tighter political oversight, describing himself as, "reasonably relaxed", about the prospect.
He suggested that such measures would simply reflect a necessary increase in democratic accountability, ensuring that police leadership remains aligned with public priorities and government strategy.
The backing of Sir Stephen, a prominent and often outspoken figure in British policing, lends significant weight to the Home Secretary’s ambitions. As the government moves to formalise these proposals, the endorsement of such a high-ranking officer suggests a growing consensus that the current policing architecture requires a fundamental reset to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
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