Middlesbrough Cleveland PCC: The Empire of Evil

Ah yes, the idiotic Operation Lancet, what a mess that was!

Let's not also forget the idiotic Operation Granite, concerning Cleveland Police's stitching up of PC Sultan Alam to get him jailed. If Cleveland Police even frame their own officers then surely it must make you wonder how many members of the public are in prison because of their corrupt withholding and/or falsifying of evidence?

Operation Sacristy, ha! ha! ha! Cleveland Police just can't help getting themselves involved in corruption scandals!

I wonder what the name for next year's corruption scandal will be? Perhaps we should send Cleveland Police our suggestions and let them choose their favourite name from our suggestions?

http://forum.thenorthernecho.co.uk/view ... 729bd8070c

Cllr Coppinger is critical of people suggesting there should be a 'non-political' figure appointed as Police Commissioner. Saying they are missing the point, I am afraid I am missing Cllr Coppingers point, he say's "The creation by the government of elected Police Commissioners has created political roles".
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That may be so, it does not mean that a politician should fill the Commissioners role.
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The present Cleveland Police Authority for many years has been managed by a majority of politicians, they cannot be proud of what they achieved,we had the criminal investigation Operation Lancet which cost over £7m, followed by a financial crisis, and the present disaster Operation Sacristy which is set to cost unknown millions£.
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It happened under their watch when Cllr Coppinger was a member.
Cllr Coppinger you say you are 'seeking the Labour candidacy for Cleveland' it will be a high pressure job very demanding, it was only in November 2011 (E Gazette) that you resigned from the Cleveland Police Authority after first consulting Mayor Mallon who agreed with your decision.
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At the time you cited pressure of work and health problems for your decision. I note also that it is a rule, that a member of the Cleveland Police Authority cannot stand for the position of Police Commissioner.
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Dennis Lane

Hello, Hello, Reading Barry Coppingers email to all councillors, it seems that Mayor Mallon has made his choice of candidate for the post of PCC, so can we expect the Middlesbrough Labour Party to follow suit.
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It seems strange when the Mayor tells us he does not know which party he is closest, he seems to have forgot he was elected as an Independent yet seems to support a labour party member.
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Comment.... He hasn't great deal of choice seeing as he was supported by Labour members against their own candidate, pay back time.
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I would have thought it would have been the Labour Party who were sending a representative to the Home Office meeting.
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See comment!

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Likewise other political parties, surely the meeting was not for one political party. Why did the Mayor not ask Cllr Sajaad khan to attend who has also thrown his hat in the ring?
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Barry informs us that at the meeting, ' Many shared a similar view,that it is vital that individuals come forward who are elected' for the PCC post.
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Barry's memory is exceptionally short, was it not the politicians on the Cleveland Police Authority who oversaw the present crisis and he was part of that team until the work load or his health problem overtook him, or was it he knew that a member of the Police Authority could not stand for the PCC?

Workload and health reasons given for resignation from the CPA...... my arris.
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He knew he was going for the Police Commisioners job, the stuff was just an excuse..........
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Because as a member of the CPA and his full time position both excludes him from application.
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If his health and workload was too much for the CPA, what then his health and workload taking on the Police Commissioners job!!!!
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From Gazette November 16 2011
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Councillor quits police authority LEADING Middlesbrough councillor Barry Coppinger has stepped down as a member of Cleveland Police Authority.
Cllr Coppinger says he is standing down for workload and health reasons. < < < < <
Cllr Coppinger, Middlesbrough Council’s Executive councillor for social care, has served on the police authority for eight years.
He is a councillor for the Pallister Ward and also has a full-time job.
Cllr Coppinger said: “I have thoroughly enjoyed my eight years with the police authority and hope I have been able to make a contribution.
"At this difficult time for the council I have found my councillor duties increasingly demanding and felt that I needed to reduce my responsibilities.”
Cllr Coppinger discussed the change fully with Middlesbrough Mayor Ray Mallon and they both decided it was the right decision for all concerned.
Peter Race, chairman of the Cleveland Police Authority, said: “I am sure I speak for the whole authority when I say that we all recognise Barry Coppinger's unstinting commitment to his duties with the police authority and the council - and respect his reasons for now deciding to stand down from the police authority.”
Mr Race said that throughout his time on the authority Cllr Coppinger had fully supported its determination to put resources where they really mattered - into front-line policing and protecting local people and communities.
“He has made a real contribution to the remarkable progress which has seen the Cleveland force become one of the most successful in the country.”
A new representative for the police authority will be put forward in due course.
Cllr Barry Coppinger has served on the police authority for eight years.

Ever heard of miracle cures? Also Mallon as his consultant at his bedside
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Disqualifying conditions. Coppinger will have discussed this with George Dunning.
If he is selected to be the Labour candidate he will resign his RBC job, but with the proviso that if he is not elected he will be re-instated.
Remember how Mallon pleaded innocent to all charges at the Lancet inquiry then pleaded guilty to all the same charges when the chief constable charged him under the police disciplinary code in order to get out of the police and stand for Mayor.
This was an admission by Mallon that he will lie when it suits his purpose, but that is a different matter.
But it does demonstrate that they are totally unscrupulous when it comes to serving their own interests

Coppinger claimed he had to stand down from the CPA for health reasons, how will he cope with a high powered Police Commissioners role????

Or was that an excuse, because he couldn't throw his hat in the ring if he was on the CPA, will his fiull time job at RBC interefere with his aspirations??

Barry Coppinger has a nerve to even think of throwing his hat in the ring for the Police Commissioners post.
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This is the man who when the Government made it known we were to have police commissioners, immediately publicly condemned the very idea.
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A few months later he resigned his position on the Cleveland Police Authority citing pressures of work, he stated he had first consulted with Mayor Mallon before resigning, he is a member of Mayor Mallons cabinet although it was the Middlesbrough Labour Group who appointed him to the Cleveland Police Authority.
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If he secures the Police Commissioners position what role will Mayor Mallon an ex policeman have?
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Will Cllr Coppinger resign from his other roles before he stands, Middlesbrough Councillor, Member of the Mayors Cabinet, Labour group advisor for the Redcar and Cleveland Labour Group.
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Many people seem to think the Police Commissioners post would be better suited to a non party political person, although it would be advantageous to have political ability, Hartlepool Mayor also Cleveland Police Authority Chair Stuart Drummond seems to fit the bill, he seems to be doing a good job, I hope he puts his name forward.
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D.L. Mbro

Barry Coppinger: Councillor, Political Advisor, Police Commissioner Candidate?
July 9, 2012 by rocklifferover

In tonights Gazette letters page, we are treated to the thoughts of one Barry Coppinger. Barry usually signs his letters as cllr Barry Coppinger, or Barry Coppinger, Labour Councillor for Pallister Ward.

Tonight, Barry drops his ‘councillor’ title, preferring instead to promote himself as the ‘Labour Party Candidate for Elected Police and Crime Commissioner. Could he have dropped the ‘councillor’ title, because he shouldn’t still be a councillor, nor should he be a employed as a ‘Political Advisor’ to Redcar and Cleveland Council, now that he is officially a candidate for the Police Commissioner job? But, hey-ho, rules mean nothing to not-a-councillor Coppinger. In fact, for a man who wants to be Police Commissioner, he has scant regard for the Law!

Let’s rewind to the Good Olde Days, when Barry was part of Cleveland Police Authority. It was customary for the location of meetings of the authority to rotate between the four unitary authorities of Redcar & Cleveland, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees and Hartlepool.

While attending one such meeting in Hartlepool, Barry Coppinger had problems parking. In fact, he earned himself a parking ticket. Instead of humbly accepting his fate and coughing up for the ticket, Barry Coppinger had something of a hissy fit, vehemently stating that he would not pay the ticket. Further, he accused the police in Hartlepool, the Police Authority and Hartlepool Council of not allowing him to park in either the town or the police car park for an authority meeting, demanding that the authority pay the fine for him!

Having then been sent to The National Standards Board for breaching four major codes of conduct and being found guilty of doing so, he was let off, three weeks after his assertions not to pay, because he apologised! (Let’s not forget that, such an apology constitutes an admittance of guilt).

Barry Coppinger was a long-standing member of Cleveland Police Authority. He was a member of the CPA when Operation Sacristy, a major criminal investigation into members of Cleveland Police and Cleveland Police Authority, started. He was vocal in calling for Operation Sacristy to be curtailed. Sacristy is a full police investigation into serious fraud. The man who wants to be in charge of our police force publicly called for this investigation to be cut short. This investigation is potentially into himself, Mayor Ray Mallon and a number of other councillors from across the Cleveland Police area and Barry Coppinger was still a member of the CPA when he went public to ask for the investigation to be cut short. His ‘opinion’ was at odds to the official statement from the CPA, which reads “The investigation must be an independent, thorough and complete inquiry into these matters – both those involved and the public of Cleveland deserve nothing less.

He stood down shortly afterwards, claiming that he had health issues. Whether he was actually advised to go, following his outburst, or whether this was a measured move, knowing full well that he couldn’t stand for Commissioner as a member of the CPA, is open to debate. Either way, the pressing health issue which was so severe that he could not continue in his role within the CPA has miraculously vanished.

If we need to question Barrys judgement further, the Mayor of Middlesbrough, that man Mallon, had Coppinger removed from his post as Executive member for Environment (which includes a Crime and Disorder brief) after he interfered with a civil contract involving taxis, causing a huge problem for all taxi companies and souring their relationship with MBC.

And the final straw? Rumour has it that Mallon actually stood aside, opting not to chase the commissioners job, leaving Coppinger to be the assumed ‘favourite’, at least in Middlesbrough. Hopefully, voters in Middlesbrough and elsewhere in the Cleveland Police area won’t be so blinkered. After all, Mallon is backing Barry for a reason. That reason is that Mallon sees a mutually beneficial relationship between himself and his old executive member, CPA lackey and, potentially,fellow accused under the Sacristy microscope. Word on the ether is that Mallon wants to control Coppinger from the sidelines.

The biggest worry is that, if Coppinger is elected to the role of Police Commissioner, he will be in a position to end Operation Sacristy before it’s full investigative conclusion. This will protect the guilty, whoever they may be. It will also leave the stench of corruption over the force, as allegations will neither be proved nor disproved. Coppinger will claim that the curtailment is the best decision, in view of the financial implications but in reality, if he and others supporting him had nothing to hide, then they would be adamant that Sacristy should continue until its bitter conclusion.

http://bettermiddlesbrough.wordpress.co ... candidate/

A day in the life - Cllr Barry Coppinger (Lab) - Middlesbrough

Saturday begins with our weekly ward surgery at Berwick Hills library. I meet up with my fellow ward councillor Eddie Dryden. Stacey and Jacqui, the neighbourhood police officers for Berwick Hills, also join us.

Surgeries are well-attended and the joint working is beneficial, as we can share information and compare notes. This week, residents’ concerns include school fencing, damaged grass verges, nuisance trees, a nuisance neighbour, and antisocial behaviour at local garages. All will be followed up in the next few days, as we agree various actions.

Eddie and I also decide to accompany the local police beat patrol the following Friday evening for a bit of youth engagement, and to discuss some local problem-solving. We’ll visit current hot spots in Berwick Hills, with Stacey, Jacqui and Steve, the council’s neighbourhood safety officer for the area, and talk to some of the local young people.

Neighbourhood policing
I’m council executive member for community protection and a member of Cleveland police authority, and work with the police at all levels. Neighbourhood policing is one of our main priorities, so it’s good to see policies and priorities in action at a local level.

After the surgery, I call home to check with my partner Val that we’ve got all appropriate ingredients in the house, as we’re having some friends round for a meal this evening. I also chat with our sons, Sean and Danny, about their intentions for the day.

Then it’s off to Captain Cook’s Square in down-town Middlesbrough for the Mela Fairtrade festival. It’s Fairtrade fortnight, and we’ve a local programme of events over the two weeks. This includes a public launch event in Radio Tees’ reception area as part of their morning show, a tea dance at the town hall, a Fairtrade disco for young people with a DJ and a dance group, fashion shows and markets.

All the events promote Fairtrade products and ask people to give up their usual brand for more ethically produced products.

I’m on the stall for a couple of hours, helping spread the word about Fairtrade and giving out free samples. We’ve had plenty of visitors during the day and hopefully it will lead to more Fairtrade users in future.

Fairtrade is an international campaign to ensure producers in developing countries receive a reasonable price for their goods, and also supports health and education projects in their communities. In 2009, Fairtrade UK sales reached £800m nationally.

Our council serves Fairtrade tea and coffee at meetings and encourages all outlets where refreshments are served to use Fairtrade. Is your council on board? There’s a lot of useful information about Fairtrade and how you or your organisation can get involved on www.fairtrade.org.uk

Today’s Mela also serves as a preview for our annual Middlesbrough Mela in the summer, which brings people from across the region and beyond to Albert Park. Today’s event includes live music and dance, a Mad Hatter’s Fairtrade tea party, stalls promoting and selling Fairtrade, a freestyle football champ showing off his skills, and a raffle to win five Fairtrade footballs signed by players from Middlesbrough football club.

Then it’s back home to tackle the other major challenge of the day … beef in stout with herb dumplings!

• Cllr Barry Coppinger is chair of Middlesbrough Fairtrade group.


http://new.lga.gov.uk/lga/core/page.do?pageId=9852664