Police commissioner 'interested' in joint mayor role

Tim Passmore said he wanted clarity about the future of the role of commissioner

A police and crime commissioner said he was "interested in" becoming the mayor of a combined council for Norfolk and Suffolk.

Tim Passmore, who has held the post of commissioner in Suffolk since 2012, is believed to be the first public figure to express an interest in the mayoral role.

A consultation on the government's plan for a mayor-led authority covering both counties is under way.

Mr Passmore said he was "looking at" being a candidate for the role although he was concerned about adding another "layer of bureaucracy".

The government is proposing a joint authority of Norfolk and Suffolk as part of its plan to move more power away from Westminster to local communities.

It said replacing the existing county, district, borough and city councils could save £2bn.

Passmore, who stood as a Conservative candidate for the commissioner role four times and was elected on each occasion, told BBC Radio Suffolk: "Yes, I am looking at it - I'll give you a direct answer to that."

He added: "I can't give much more of a commitment than that because I don't know exactly what powers, budgets and so on [it would have]."

The proposed merger would result in the abolition of Norfolk County Council and other authorities in both counties

Passmore acknowledged that it would not be easy to bring the two areas together: "We're in a unique position in Norfolk and Suffolk.

"You have two sovereign forces, two different levels of council tax, two budgets, two police and crime plans, two different levels of debt.

"If you're going to have a single person having overall responsibility for this, how is this going to be an improvement on the status quo because it risks adding another layer of bureaucracy and, therefore, cost?"

He added that he intended to carry on as commissioner "for the foreseeable future" but the "discussion about what's going to happen to the role going forward clearly is a distraction, so we do need clarity".

Council elections in Norfolk and Suffolk, which were due to take place in May, have been delayed until 2026 as a result of the shake-up of local government.