Five takeaways from PCC's time in the hot seat

Darryl Preston, left, fielded questions from the public and BBC presenter Chris Mann

Cambridgeshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Darryl Preston has been in the hot seat on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

A police officer for three decades, Mr Preston was re-elected as PCC in May and holds Cambridgeshire Police's chief constable to account.

Mr Preston took questions from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire Daytime presenter Chris Mann, as well as those from listeners.

Here are five takeaways from his time in the hot seat.

1. We've never had more bobbies on the beat

Mr Preston said there was "a record number of police officers", with 1,732 working in Cambridgeshire.

He said that included "frontline bobbies" as well as people working behind the scenes.

Cambridgeshire Police Federation said the number of officers was positive news, but still "wasn't enough".

Liz Groom, their chairperson, said: "We should be properly funded according to our population, where we've had a huge uplift – the pressure on officers is significant."

2. 101 isn't great

Listener David in Wisbech said he rang 101 recently for assistance but "nobody was there to answer the phone", and he was told to make an appointment at Peterborough police station instead.

Mr Preston said he would keep police stations open all hours if he had "infinite money" but "we've got to be realistic".

He said he had recruited more call handlers to deal with inquiries, and the telephone system for 101 was being replaced.

"I'm not going to shy away from this – 101, nationally, has not been great," he said.

3. Cambridge was 'bicycle crime capital'

Mr Preston said Cambridge was "like the bike crime capital in the country" when he took office in 2021.

Cambridge North railway station was recently named the worst in the country for bicycle thefts, according to figures from the British Transport Police.

He said social media videos showing criminals stealing bikes eroded "trust and confidence in policing", but insisted bike crime had reduced by 54% in the year to April.

"I do appreciate that sometimes people don't report [crimes] because it can be clunky or tricky, but I think as an indicator we can say that bike theft has gone down," he said.

4. Calls for more e-scooter laws

Listener Bernard in Waterbeach said he took his "life into his own hands" while crossing the road – because of e-scooters.

Mr Preston said police cannot enforce the law by confiscating illegal e-scooters, rather than those being ridden lawfully, "all the time".

He said: "It needs to be looked at in the round. It's not just a policing issue. The legislation we have at the moment is not designed for e-scooters."

5. Not many people know what a PCC does

A BBC Radio Cambridgeshire straw poll of members of the public in Wisbech revealed not many people knew who Mr Preston was – with one lady believing he ran the local carpet shop.

Mr Preston admitted he was asked "What do you do?" a lot when he attended community events.

The role of PCC has existed since 2012, so it is a relatively new institution.

Mr Preston said his role made the process of making change in policing "far quicker", adding: "Ultimately, I'm accountable to the public."