North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones to step down

Arfon Jones said he wanted to retire after working for more than 46 years

The police and crime commissioner for north Wales has said he will step down and not seek re-election this year.

Arfon Jones, from Plaid Cymru, said the main reason was that he will have been working for more than 46 years.

But he also said it would be "more difficult to make a difference" due to the pandemic, Brexit and a shortened three-year term of office.

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said the nation was "indebted" to Mr Jones for his "tremendous contribution".

Mr Jones, a former police inspector and Wrexham councillor, was elected in 2016 and has served five years after the 2020 commissioner elections were postponed due to coronavirus.

"I have achieved a lot in the past five years and it is going to be more difficult to make a difference next time because of the pandemic, Brexit and the fact that the term of office has been curtailed to three years." he said.

'Considerable achievements'

Paying tribute to his party colleague, Mr Price said: "We are indebted to Arfon Jones for his tremendous contribution as the police and crime commissioner for north Wales.

"From launching Checkpoint Cymru - a project to address the underlying causes of offending - commissioning over £2m worth of services to support victims of crime; leading the charge in tackling domestic violence and to more recently keeping our communities safe during the coronavirus pandemic, Arfon's considerable achievements in office are a testament to his commitment to the constituents he serves."

Elections for police and crime commissioners in England and Wales - the third since the posts were created in 2012 - are due to take place in May.