The future of policing in Norfolk has been thrust into uncertainty by a national review that could recommend sweeping consolidations of local forces into larger regional bodies. The review, led by former Metropolitan Police commissioner Lord Bernard Hogan-Howe, is due to publish recommendations later this year on a potential restructure of the current 43 constabularies across England and Wales into a smaller number of larger forces.
Regional consolidation under consideration
Among the proposals being discussed in political and policing circles is the creation of an East of England "mega force" that could unite several neighbouring constabularies. Speculation has centred on a grouping of up to six forces in the region — Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire — though the review’s final recommendations have not yet been published.
The prospect has provoked immediate pushback from local political figures. Suffolk’s police and crime commissioner, Conservative Tim Passmore, has publicly rejected the idea of his county becoming a single participant within a six-force regional arrangement and has framed his opposition in stark terms.
“I have told the home secretary that I am very much opposed to the creation of mega forces which would see Suffolk become a single participant in a group of six forces across the eastern region,”
Passmore said he would prefer a closer bilateral arrangement with Norfolk and signalled an intention to explore a possible merger between the two counties’ constabularies, describing such a move as a preferable alternative to being one member of a far larger regional structure.
Local response and accountability concerns
Representatives of Norfolk Constabulary were approached for comment on the possibility of a merger but declined to comment. The office of Norfolk’s police and crime commissioner, Reform’s Colin Sutton, was also asked for a response and no comment was provided in the material available.
Concerns expressed publicly by the Suffolk PCC reflect wider debates about the trade-offs inherent in consolidation: proponents argue that larger forces can generate efficiencies and better coordinate cross-border threats, while opponents warn of reduced local accountability, diluted community knowledge and potential harm to policing tailored to individual counties.
- Review leadership: former Metropolitan Police commissioner Lord Bernard Hogan-Howe
- Current structure: 43 constabularies in England and Wales
- Speculated group: Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Number of current constabularies | 43 |
| Potential regional grouping (East of England) | 6 forces (speculated) |
| Local opposition highlighted | Tim Passmore, Suffolk PCC |
At this stage the review’s timetable remains the primary deadline: recommendations are expected later this year. Until they are published, policing bodies and political representatives in the affected counties will be assessing strategic, financial and governance ramifications, while also testing political resistance at local and national levels.
Officials and stakeholders will need to weigh the operational advantages that larger forces might bring against the risks to local oversight emphasised by figures such as the Suffolk PCC. The debate exposes a fault line in English policing policy — whether consolidation is the most effective route to tackling modern, often cross-border, criminality, or whether it will weaken the local relationships and knowledge that underpin effective community policing.
As the review progresses, it will be essential for ministers and police leaders to set out the evidence underpinning any move to alter the map of UK policing, including implications for response times, specialist capability, local governance and public confidence. For now, counties in the East of England face the possibility of a fundamental reorganisation that would reshape how policing is delivered across a large, diverse region.
