Below is the candidate profile for Ben Adams, the Conservative candidate for the Staffordshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner election.
This profile has been added to our Candidate Profiles page on our 2021 election hub – click here to see more candidate profiles.
Answers to the questions aren’t edited, other than for formating, and are therefore the candidates own words.
In your own words tell our readers about yourself
I am a 56 year old, largely self-educated, small business owner. I grew up in Sutton Coldfield and have lived in Staffordshire for 33 years. I have two children now in the mid-twenties and living in London. I write accounting software and help organisations to manage change. I co-owned an Apple Computer dealership before focussing on software. I have always been interested in politics and when family circumstances allowed I started trying to make a positive difference for people. I have been a local and county councillor, twice run for parliament in Stoke-on-Trent North and recently been focussed on the Police, Fire & Crime role.
What’s your personal statement about why you’re standing and what you want to achieve over the term if elected?
Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent have come a long way since the financial crisis with economic growth, better paid jobs and a developing pride in our county. Our low crime and accident rates make this an attractive place to invest and live. My plan to keep Staffordshire safe includes…
- Recruiting 250 more police officers to keep driving down crime and anti-social behaviour.
- Managing the costs carefully so our frontline services have the equipment, training and support they need.
- Tackling the causes of crime by investing in crime and fire prevention. Reducing domestic abuse and treating addiction.
- Supporting victims and witnesses to help them recover from crime or accidents.
- Make sure local community concerns drive our local Police and Fire Plans.
Staffordshire is a big place with different challenges to be met. I want our service delivery to reflect these local differences and for residents and businesses to feel safe.
How does standing as a political party candidate affect serving local people on local issues?
Being a member of a political party gives voters a sense of a candidates principles while the support of party volunteers can help a candidate to be elected. Getting elected is the first step to being able to influence public bodies and policy in the interest of the people you represent. Once elected working in a political group can mean a candidate has direct influence on what services look like and how they are delivered. As an independent this capacity to influence is more limited as you generally remain on the back benches and whilst this gives Independents the freedom to express views without censure by political group colleagues it also ultimately limits your capacity to influence policy locally. Being a member of a political group on a council is not an easy thing, some politicians, particularly those driven by single issues, find the compromise difficult but I believe effective negotiation and compromise are essential skills in influencing others to the advantage of your constituents.
I am in politics because I want to help people and to ensure services are run efficiently, at low cost and are focussed on the needs of the those that most need help so I am happy being a member of the Conservative party.
What’s been your history as a political councillor?
I was elected as a Lichfield district councillor 15 years ago and as a Staffordshire County Councillor for part of Tamworth 12 years ago. I have held cabinet positions through most of that time dealing with community safety, libraries, job creation, economic development, tourism and education.
Apart from family commitments what other commitments do you have on your time? This could be work, business, voluntary or community roles – if these are linked to organisations in Stone then please mention it.
I have a small software company which provides business software to owner managed companies. I regularly campaign across the region and am particularly keen to support new candidates.
What are the top 5 issues that you think affect the residents of Stone currently have?
I think Stone residents are mostly concerned about the same things as many other places in Staffordshire namely, the health of themselves and their families and their incomes during the pandemic. They are concerned for the future of their high street as people’s buying habits change. They want the vulnerable in their communities to be supported and to see investment in the area to preserve a pleasant environment. Recently some incidents of very visible vandalism and anti-social behaviour have been a particular worry for Stone residents and I visited the town to see these for myself. I am pleased that the police have largely resolved the problems but am keen that more visible policing is undertaken to reassure local people that Stone remains a very safe place to live and for visitors to feel safe to return and support the town economy when lockdown is eased.
Explain in your own words what the role of the PFCC is and why it’s important.
The Police, Fire & Crime commissioner primary responsibility is to ensure that the funding available to the police and fire & rescue services is carefully spent on the personnel, training, equipment and support that they need to keep us safe. The commissioner is directly responsible for working with partner organisations to reduce crime and risk of fire and accident and to secure services to assist victims, witnesses, work to reduce domestic violence and tackle underlying cause of crime such as addiction to drugs or alcohol.
The PFCC also consults with the public to prepare local Police and Fire 7 Rescue plans. The services are required to take account of these plans so this is where local priorities can be emphasised and we should see different service mixes across the country reflecting local community needs. The PFCC is also responsible for hiring the chief constable and chief fire officers.
Finally the commissioner represents the people in the area and hold the services to account on behalf of the community. The commissioner is a representative of the local people not the Police or Fire & Rescue Service so ultimately addressing complaints and concerns falls to the PFCC too.
An effective commissioner will therefore directly influence the priorities and effectiveness of two vitally important public services whilst developing strong relationships with health, councils, schools, the wider criminal justice system and other bodies that all need to work together to help us to be safe and feel safe. Who is in this role really matters.
