Police and Justice Bill

I shall deal specifically with that shortly because the coterminosity of the basic command unit and the local district council is critical. I accept my hon. Friend’s implicit criticism—the performance of community safety partnerships has been patchy throughout the country. I could take him to some where genuinely outstanding work has been done in exactly the way that he would like, and to others where there has been a more desultory set of affairs. A key element of the Bill is strengthening the partnerships so that he and all hon. Members can have confidence that their local crime and disorder reduction partnership between the police and the local authorities works.