Four candidates up for commissioner job

A Powys county councillor is amongst the quartet of candidates vying to become the next Police and Crime Commissioner for Dyfed-Powys Police.

Powys County Councillor for Guilsfield, Ian Harrison is the Conservative candidate in the election.

He along with Labour and Co-Operative party’s Philippa Thompson and Liberal Democrat Justin Griffiths will be challenging Plaid Cymru’s incumbent, Dafydd Llywelyn for the role.

Mr Llywelyn who grew up in Meifod has been the commissioner since 2016.

The candidates were revealed on the Ceredigion County Council website on Monday, April 8.

Ceredigion council is the host authority for the 2024 commissioner elections in Dyfed-Powys.

The council’s chief executive Eifion Evans is the police area returning officer for the Dyfed-Powys police area and is responsible for the overall conduct of the election.

There will be some changes to the way the election will be run this time around.

Ahead of the election, voters are being reminded of the need to bring photo identification, such as a passport or driver’s licence, to polling stations due to a change in the law.

Another change is in the voting system which will see the commissioners elected by the first past the post system for the first time.

In all previous elections since 2012 the single transferable vote (STV) system was used which saw people vote for their first and second preferences.

The commissioner is responsible for: holding the police force to account, appointing chief constables and dismissing them if necessary, setting police budgets and the Council Tax precept people will need to pay towards policing.

The commissioner also sets out the priorities for the local area, overseers how crime is tackled, aims to ensure the police are providing a good service, and is also expected to meet and consult with the public regularly and listen to their views on policing.

The elections are supposed to be held every four years, but the last election took place in May 2021 – having been postponed from May 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.