States police chief Mike Bowron tells Jack Maguire about rebuilding belief in the force
IN the aftermath of the 2008 child abuse inquiry Operation Rectangle – the most high-profile investigation the Island has ever seen – Jersey’s police force was in turmoil.
States police chief Graham Power had been suspended for his handling of the case and Detective Superintendent Mick Gradwell, who took over as the inquiry’s senior investigating officer, described the costly operation as a ‘poorly managed mess’.
So when the current police chief, Mike Bowron – a career policeman who is the longest-serving chief officer in Britain alongside the Metropolitan Police’s Bernard Hogan-Howe – was offered the job of taking over the reins of the States police in 2011, he had one priority: to steady the ship.
‘The force’s reputation had taken a hit,’ Mr Bowron says, speaking from his office at Rouge Bouillon, which is adorned with pictures and memorabilia from his 36-year police career, including a picture of him with US President Barack Obama during the G20 summit in the UK in 2009.
‘When I first came here the message was that there was not a great deal of confidence in the police from the public, press or politicians.
‘It was not through lack of talent – there is some amazing talent.
‘I came here to steady the ship. I had to lift spirits and boost morale.’
Mr Bowron brought two of the UK’s leading officers with him: Detective Superintendent Stewart Gull, an officer who had made national headlines himself for his role in tracking down Steven Wright, who murdered five prostitutes in Ipswich in 2006, and Superintendent Rob Bastable, who had worked with Mr Bowron during his previous role as Commissioner of the City of London Police.
‘Frankly, as far as I was concerned Stewart was one of the best senior detectives in the UK.
‘I knew him by his reputation alone.
‘And Rob was one of the best chief superintendent divisional commanders I had ever worked with,’ he says.
The two men were introduced to help change the force, rebuild its reputation and nurture young talent that Mr Bowron says is in abundance in Jersey’s small force of around 212 officers.
‘We have the most talented cops I have ever worked with here,’ he adds.
Four years on from his appointment and crime is at a record low.
By the end of the year Mr Bowron, who started his policing career in 1980 with Sussex Police, expects the police to have recorded 3,000 crimes for 2015 – 1,500 fewer than in 2011, when he moved to the Island.
And the 58-year-old recognises that in a time of austerity the public could point the finger at his force and question whether more cuts can be made to its full-time staff.
But, as he explains, only 20 per cent of police work actually involves crime.
The other 80 per cent falls under the wide-reaching category of welfare – responding to suicides and attempted suicides, child welfare concerns, domestic issues, alcohol-related incidents and mental health concerns, to name but a few.
‘As an example,’ he says, ‘I was jogging home last night and I helped two officers break into a property in town where there was a welfare incident.
‘I looked at the log and that took 12 to 16 cop hours, and then they have to follow that up.
‘It is that kind of stuff which is not recorded as a crime, detection or any performance-related data.
‘I don’t get performance targets for these sorts of things.
‘If crime is down by a third, people could say we could lose a third of our cops, but I am more concerned about someone killing themselves than shoplifting.
‘There are names and families behind that data.’
The police now have 20 fewer front-line officers than when Mr Bowron took over.
However, they still conduct the work of a national force, he says.
‘We have an international airport, a Special Branch unit and a financial crime team, which is almost as big as the core capability for the whole of Wales.’
Mr Bowron, a nominee in the inaugural Pride of Jersey Awards this year, explains that Jersey’s Special Branch has a duty to uphold the UK standards of border control and are in regular contact with intelligence agencies such as MI5 in an effort to combat terrorist threats to Britain.
Asked if he has a message to politicians about the cuts and the risk to Islanders’ safety if the force were to lose more officers, Mr Bowron says: ‘My message is we need to do things differently.
‘The Medium Term Financial Plan is a fact. Across government departments there will be fewer people who are going to have to work harder, and things are going to be tough.
‘We can either sit down and moan and say we can’t cope, or we can use it as an opportunity.
‘Nothing at the police will come under threat. We don’t intend to give up anything.
‘We might just have a little less of something, depending on demands.
‘But there may reach a limit when the force can’t perform all the functions it needs. I don’t know what the perfect number of officers is, but there is a bottom line and we need to make sure we fund it.’
The father of one, whose wife was a detective constable in London, has not always been a policeman.
He began his working life as an insurance broker at Lloyd’s of London before joining Sussex Police in 1980, where he rose through the ranks.
Between 1990 and 1993 he was posted to Czechoslovakia as part of a team to help train the country’s police force following the fall of communism.
And in 2000 he was sent to Indonesia, where he was charged with reforming the 200,000 strong national police force during a time when President Suharto was under investigation for corruption.
In recent years Mr Bowron has become well known for his lunchtime strolls around town, during which he stops to chat to members of the public.
The meet-and-greet element to his day is another practice he has brought with him from his previous force.
But back then, when he held the title of Commissioner of the City of London police, he would do things slightly differently.
‘I love meeting people. I used to do it often back in London.
‘But back then I did it on my own horse, Finn, which, as Commissioner, I was given as part of the job.’
- Graduated from Sussex University with a 2:1 in sociology
- Worked as an insurance broker for Lloyds of London from 1976 to 1980
- Joined Sussex Police in 1980
- Moved to Brighton, where he rose to the rank of superintendent and the role of head of operations
- Between 1990 and 1993 he was sent to Czechoslovakia to held rebuild the countrys police force after the fall of communism
- Appointed Assistant Chief Constable of Kent Police in 1997
- Sent to Indonesia to work with the countrys police force after the fall of President Suharto in 2000
- Became the Assistant Commissioner of the City of London Police in 2002 and then Commissioner in 2006
- Head of operations for the City of London Police during the 7/7 bombings
- in 2005
- Awarded the Queens Police Medal in 2007 and graduated from the FBI Academy in the same year, where he was working as the sole representative from Europe
- Joined the States police in January 2011
