Commissioner To Scrutinise Work To Tackle Serious Violence In First Public Meeting With New Chief

CITY OF LIVERPOOL, LIVERPOOL CITY REGION.

Police & Crime Commissioner To Scrutinise Work To Tackle Serious Violence In First Public Meeting With New Chief Constable

Chief Constable Rob Carden and Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell in front of the Merseyside Police crest (Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian with permission to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

The Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell will hold her first public Scrutiny Meeting with newly appointed Chief Constable Rob Carden this week, focusing on serious violence, road safety, and emerging policing challenges.

The meeting on Wednesday the 24th of September 2025 will provide a platform for the PCC to examine how Merseyside Police is tackling key issues affecting communities across the region, including gun and knife crime, child exploitation, modern slavery, retail crime, and cybercrime.

Live-streamed so the public can watch, the meeting will give people across Merseyside the chance to hear from new Chief Constable Rob Carden on a number of critical issues, including how Merseyside Police is preparing for any future protests and how the organisation is responding to new national guidance in relation to disclosing the ethnicity of those suspected of crimes.

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The Commissioner will also ask for an update on how Merseyside Police is putting in place the commitments set out in the Government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which is focused on increasing public confidence in policing and putting more police back on the beat to crack down on issues such as antisocial behaviour and retail crime.

The PCC will also scrutinise the latest data from her public dashboard, including trends in serious violence, homicide, and call-handling performance.

A number of key operations will also be put under the spotlight, including how the force is using hotspot policing to reduce serious violence, the work of Project Medusa in tackling Country Lines and the exploitation of young people and how the organisation is working to disrupt cybercrime.

The police leaders will also discuss road safety and the work being delivered as part of the Vision Zero strategy to reduce the number of preventable collisions on the region’s roads, including the results so far from Operation Gears, the force’s crackdown on the illegal use of electric bikes, e-scooters and off-road motorcycles.

The session at Mann Island in Liverpool, will also include questions submitted by the public and from the PCC’s two independent scrutiny members, covering issues such as anti-social behaviour, hate crime, and the development of the Special Constabulary.

Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell, said: “This meeting marks an important milestone as it gives the public the chance to hear directly from our new Chief Constable Rob Carden on a number of hugely important issues.

The PCC added: “From serious violence and road safety to modern slavery and fraud, we’ll be asking Rob and his senior team challenging questions on topics that matter to people across Merseyside and reviewing the data to ensure transparency and accountability.”

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The Commissioner, said: “This first public scrutiny session is a vital opportunity to explore how Merseyside Police is responding to the challenges facing our communities and to hear his plans to ensure the force continues to deliver on its commitment to keep people safe.”

Commissioner Spurrell added: “As always, I’m pleased to be asking questions put forward by the public, whose voices are central to shaping policing priorities. I encourage everyone to tune in and watch the meeting live or catch up via my website.”

Members of the public are encouraged to watch at PCC Scrutiny Meeting on Wednesday the 24th of September 2025 at 2:00pm, through the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Webcasting. A recording will also be available on the PCC’s website afterwards.