The home secretary has unveiled an overhaul of policing in England and Wales which could see people being given the mobile phone number of their local bobby.
The plans include a dedicated policing team for each neighbourhood and a 10 point compulsory customer charter.
Government Response: Home Office
David Blunkett, home secretary, said: "The government and the police service have worked hard to ensure that our country is safer and better policed, with the chance of being a victim of crime now at the lowest in 20 years.
"But policing cannot stand still and we need to continue to reform and modernise to respond to the challenges of our rapidly changing society.
"Key to this vision is bringing in dedicated neighbourhood policing teams across the country. They will be supported by continued substantial investment that will maintain record officer numbers and also provide 25,000 community support officers and wardens.
"We will also improve the way the police deal with the public by embedding a genuinely responsive customer service culture and making the police more accessible, visible and accountable. A new improvement agency will ensure that policing is driven by intelligence and good performance information.
"Public satisfaction with the police - which overall is high compared to other public services - will become part of how police performance is measured, and where inaction has led to disillusionment and frustration in the community, local people will be able to trigger action.
"Reform is essential if our police service is to continue to cut crime and protect and empower law-abiding citizens and communities. Our policy paper sets out an ambitious and radical agenda, one that I hope will have the support of both the public and the police, and which can make a real difference to the strength and safety of our communities."
Party Response: Liberal Democrats
Mark Oaten, Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, said: "The government are right to increase the links between local people and the police.
"But these measures will only work if they're matched with a cut in the amount of paper work - and investment in modern equipment to keep the police out on the streets."
Party Response: Conservatives
David Davis, shadow home secretary, said: "There is nothing new or radical in this paper. It is little more than a taxpayer-funded PR exercise in the run up to a general election.
"The fact is that detection rates are down by a fifth since 1997. Only half the cases of violence against the person are detected compared to 80 per cent in 1997. Sexual offences detected have halved since this government came to power. This is the single most important issue facing the police today, yet this white paper offers nothing to deal with this.
"If the government was serious about dealing with crime it would give the police the time and the ability to deter and detect criminal activity. Only the Conservatives will put 40,000 extra police officers on the streets and free from the burden of bureaucracy to do this."
Chris Fox, president of ACPO, said: "We are pleased to see that the government's reform programme published in the white paper is being built upon the vision and many initiatives that our members have already developed. From the national intelligence model to local community policing based in the neighbourhoods, we will build on these initiatives and give assurance to our communities.
"A modern police service must be responsive and accountable to local communities. We look forward to developing a police service which demonstrates an attention to local policing that residents can clearly see.
"Policing in neighbourhoods and dealing with anti-social behaviour is important work for the police. Nevertheless, we must have a seamless service able to tackle terrorism, national and international organised crime at the highest level through to travelling criminal activity and street crime. Our police service must be able to deal with criminal and anti-social behaviour at street level to the international level.
"Our workforce must have the appropriate skills, development and training to work within those neighbourhoods and at the same time deal with complex criminal activity at all levels. Dedicated policing teams will be the foundation for this, providing visibility, reassurance and information.
"The white paper identifies an increase of policing tasks in many areas from higher standards of call handling and feedback to new neighbourhood teams working in a different way. Much effort and resource will be needed to achieve this and as yet we are not convinced the resources available match the expectation and allow us to continue to deliver our current levels of performance.
"The proposals outlined are general and without the necessary detail it is impossible to be definite about the implications of some of the recommendations. There are a number of new mechanisms for accountability which could deflect us from our core role which, it is pleasing to see has been defined as preventing crime.
"We welcome local accountability but our concern that formal levels of scrutiny through local authorities, police authorities, Her Majesty’s Inspector and the Police Standards Unit might be excessive. We look forward to understanding these mechanisms better during the consultation phase. It is our intention to be properly accountable while keeping our operational focus on preventing crime and re-establishing the highest levels of trust.
"Demands on our police are enormous with calls for service doubling over the last eight years. A properly funded service, where chief constables have the flexibility to deploy police staff according to local needs, and where they are held properly accountable within a framework of professional standards, ethics and performance will indeed be a force to be reckoned with."
Stakeholder Response: North Wales Police
Clive Wolfendale, deputy chief constable, said: "This is an opportunity for personal and continuing contact between local beat officers and their communities. We are proud to be at the forefront of what amounts to a revolution in modern policing."
