PCC apologies over “hasty promotion” of deputy appointment

Police panel says her actions were "discourteous"

Devon and Cornwall police and crime commissioner (PCC) Alison Hernandez has apologised to the panel that scrutinises her work for talking to the media before formally notifying them of her decision to appoint a deputy.

The Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel voted to recommend the PCC did not appoint her chosen candidate Mark Kingscote at a meeting on July 19 as he “did not meet the minimum requirements for the role”.

But Ms Hernandez, who has the power to recruit a deputy without the panel’s support, said she did not accept the recommendation and spoke to journalists after the meeting saying she would be appointing Mr Kingscote with immediate effect.

Five councillors on the panel said a press release from the commissioner’s office was also issued within hours of the meeting before she had received official confirmation of the panel’s recommendation.

They said it was “discourteous” that more than two weeks passed before Ms Hernandez advised the panel of her intention to appoint Mr Kingscote and that her actions had brought the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) “into disrepute by showing total disrespect for the panel and the decision it made”.

At an extraordinary meeting of the panel last Friday called to discuss the issue, members voted to accept the commissioner’s apology over what she said appeared to be “a misunderstanding”.

Ms Hernandez said she recognised that by speaking to the media, her decision was communicated to the public before her office had formally recorded the decision and before she had notified the panel but as she was in the council chamber to hear the debate she did not feel the need to wait for the panel’s written confirmation.

She said there had been an administrative delay with the publication of her own decision notice which was “regrettable”.

She did not accept that her actions had brought the office into disrepute as it had all been done “legally and with best intention”.

After the meeting she said: “The one thing I do not want to do is insult the police and crime panel. They are there to support me in carrying out my role as a commissioner and also to scrutinise my actions and decisions to make sure I am doing things in the right way.

“I was probably a bit too hasty in my promotion of my deputy so I am happy to apologise for any misunderstanding about what process should have been followed. It was never written down, neither side was clear, so next time we will make sure we are.”

Ms Hernandez worked with Mark Kingscote for 15 years when they were both Conservative councillors in Torbay.

She said he had a “unique set of skills”, including working with people with complex mental health needs over a 30-year career in the NHS, to focus on the problems on the ground while she helped the leadership of the organisation, which had been without a chief constable since July 2023.

Chief constable Will Kerr is under investigation for sexual assault allegations by the Public Prosecution Service of Northern Ireland (PONI), which he strenuously denies.

The Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel said they did not believe Mr Kingscote, who Ms Hernandez had previously tried to recruit in 2017, had the right experience for the £59,000 a year job.

The role is expected to run for 12 months, with the option to extend to the end of the current electoral term in 2028.