Meet your Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner candidates

Voters will have the chance to pick their preferred candidate for the Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in elections on May 2. 

A PCC is the elected leader of a regional police force and is responsible for its policing strategy; its budget; and appointing its top police officer – the chief constable.  

The three main political parties are set to contest the role, with incumbent Conservative PCC Matthew Barber up against Labour’s Tim Starkey and the Lib Dem’s Tim Bearder.

There are also two independent candidates, Ben Holden-Crowther and Russell Douglas Fowler.

The Advertiser spoke to prospective candidates on their priorities and strategies, to help inform your decision ahead of the big vote.

Matthew Barber – Conservative:

Matthew Barber has held the role of PCC since 2021, having previously served as deputy PCC.

He also served as leader of the Vale of White Horse council in Oxfordshire prior to his police work.

Speaking on his priorities if he were to win a second term, Mr Barber said he wanted to improve 101 call times as well as increase the numbers of neighbourhood police officers and increase patrols.

“I think it’s about getting the basics right,” he said. “When I’m out talking to people, very few raise those big things that make national headlines, but they do talk about neighbourhood policing.”

Mr Barber also discussed how he would look to address the results of a police report, of which 60 per cent of respondents said they trusted the force.

He said: “If you’ve got the 17-year-old shop worker and she reports shoplifting and doesn’t get the response she thinks would be right – of course that would undermine her trust in the police should she need them for anything that might happen in the future.

“We need more visibility in our communities, that’s why we’ve doubled the amount of neighbourhood officers and we have got more coming.”

Tim Starkey – Labour:

Tim Starkey is a practising criminal prosecution barrister with 22 years of experience in the role.

He has also spent time working with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the rape and serious sexual assaults team.

He said his priority was to redress the ‘crisis of confidence’ in police following more than a decade of Conservative rule.

“I think it [neighbourhood policing] has been hollowed out,” said Mr Starkey.

“When I’ve been going round talking to people across the whole of Thames Valley, people are saying when they report things no one gets back in touch.

“There’s been a crisis of confidence and trust in police, so rebuilding that trust is absolutely at the heart of what I want to do.”

Mr Starkey also pointed to addressing violence against women as a key area of improvement for police.

“In my day job I spend a lot of time prosecuting people involved in these sorts of crimes,” he said.

“We recently had the report into the Sarah Everard case and it makes pretty shocking reading.

“There needs to be more things like vetting procedures and disciplinary measures for officers, as well as providing correct information to victims of domestic abuse.”

Tim Bearder – Liberal Democrats:

Mr Bearder is the council member for Adult Social Care in Oxfordshire County Council.

Part of his role is overseeing the multi-million pound Adult Social Care budget – often the biggest cost to a council.

One of the top policing issues for Mr Bearder was tackling dangerous driving on roads in the Thames Valley.

He said: “Anyone who drives down the M40 will know the vast majority [of people] just want to get home or get to work, but they are being intimidated by a minority because they know Thames Valley Police are going to let them get away with it.”

Oxfordshire council has introduced 20mph speed limits in select areas, which Mr Bearder said – as well as asking residents on his campaign trail - showed there was a desire for more speed enforcement.

Investments in more average speed cameras, he added, as well as better data management and analysis would help police to crack down on problem drivers.

Discussing what could be done to improve trust in police, Mr Bearder also stressed the importance of restoring neighbourhood policing as well as stopping violence against women.

He added: “For this election, I think there’s a real danger that the two Tims - if you like – will split the vote.

“But the only party that’s generating enough cross-party support to beat the Tories is the Lib Dems.”

Ben Holden-Crowther - More Police Officers (independent):

Ben Holden-Crowther is based in Bucklebury, West Berkshire, is self-employed and has worked at three different technology companies.

The father of three has started his own party, More Police Officers for the Thames Valley, for the 2024 election. 

He said: “I think people are frustrated that relatively routine crimes like shop-lifting and burglary are being overlooked.

“When I’ve been out to speak to people on the street, asking ‘do you want more officers?’ -people said to me ‘what officers?’

“It’s a really frustrating situation.”

If elected, he said he wanted to employ more officers but added there were further concerns over ‘wasted’ police funding.

Mr Holden-Crowther pointed to money spent on staff who worked for the PCC office - which he believes could instead of been spent on front-line officers.

On how he would improve trust in police, Mr Holden-Crowther said work was needed to improve police vetting procedures and stronger enforcement of officers who break the rules.

He added: “We have got five male candidates now and - although I’m an independent candidate so I couldn’t put forward anyone but myself – I think its frustrating that none of the political parties have put forward a female candidate.”

Russell Douglas Fowler - Independent

Russell Douglas Fowler is a former diamond mine explorer who has travelled across the Kalahari desert and lived with the San people.

In a varied career also involving work on the boards of major corporations, including a tobacco company in Russia, he now runs an anti-fuel theft business in Gerrards Cross: FuelDefend Global.

He said he hoped to travel back to Africa in the future - on an exploration to find the ‘lost city of the Kalahari’.

“Somebody said to me recently, it [my background] is a bit like Indiana Jones, but I said Indiana Jones has got nothing on me,” he said.

Mr Fowler said his background gave him a unique perspective on the PCC role in comparison to the other candidates - pointing to his work on company boards where he said his role had involved ensuring people were held to account for their decisions. 

His priorities if he were elected, he said, would be tackling corruption and adding more police officers.

All serving police officers would be asked to take ‘an oath of honesty’ to improve trust in the force, he added.  

But Mr Fowler has advised voters to back one of his rival candidates – Labour’s Tim Starkey.

“I think Tim is an excellent candidate,” he said.

“He’s not a political type, he’s an excellent barrister – he’s spent 25 years or so scrutinising the police in his work.

“I think there you’ve got someone who really wants to do this for the sake of making things better within Thames Valley.”