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Merseyside Police welcomes a
new Chief Constable
ON Monday, 4 July 2016, Mr Andy Cooke has taken up his new
role as Chief Constable of Merseyside Police. Chief Constable Cooke has a
significant amount of experience in Policing Merseyside having started his
career with Merseyside Police in 1985. During the last 30 years he has worked
his way up through the ranks and has served at every rank as a detective. His
experience within the Force gives him a solid understanding of the challenges
faced by the Force and he is committed to ensuring that the Force puts the
communities of Merseyside at the forefront of everything it does.
Chief Constable Cooke, explained:- "I am proud to have been
given the opportunity to lead the Force responsible for Policing the county I
grew up in. I have lived in Merseyside all my life and I am determined to
continue to give the communities of Merseyside an excellent Police service,
despite the backdrop of cuts to the service. I am really looking forward to
leading the outstanding Officers and staff of Merseyside Police during what is a
significant period of change and challenge.My main aim is to protect the
communities of Merseyside and I intend to do that by having the right people in
the right place so we are as effective and efficient as we can be. Our budget
has been cut significantly and I would like to reassure the public that we will
make best use of every penny we spend, whilst continuing to protect the public
of Merseyside on a daily basis."
He then added that:- "There are many challenges for me and the Force going
forward and we will meet them head on. I want to establish a modern Force with
traditional values, that is capable of tackling the emerging threats of Cyber
Crime and child sexual exploitation. The more traditional crimes of robbery and
burglary are not as prevalent as they used to be, but they have been overtaken
by cyber crime. When we were dealing with robbery and burglary it was much more
simple, nine times out of 10 the offender lived locally and it was easier to
detect. With Cyber Crime the offender probably doesn't even live in the area and
could even be in another country, investigations in to these types of offences
are much more complex, and sadly the impact is huge. Most people today have
computers, smart phones, and tablets, and the advancement in technologies has
led to members of the public falling prey to crime (from fraud to online
grooming) in their own homes. Whilst we are committed to putting offenders
involved in this type of crime behind bars, we are also determined to help the
public understand how they can take measures to help protect themselves from
falling prey to this type of crime. I am proud to come from Liverpool and have a
real passion for the City where I grew up. It is a real honour to now be able to
be at the forefront of making our communities safer and encouraging others,
visitors and businesses, to come in to Merseyside and realise what the county
has to offer. Andy Cooke will take over the leadership of Merseyside Police on
Monday. I welcome him to his new role. Like Sir Jon Murphy, Andy has served at
every rank in Merseyside Police from Constable to Chief Constable."
Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner Jane Kennedy, said:- "Andy has
wide experience of Policing, is very well respected in the Policing community
and already holds a number of significant national roles including the Queen's
Police Medal. He clearly has the leadership qualities to take Merseyside Police
forward and to continue to deliver the high quality of Policing that people here
on Merseyside expect and deserve. I look forward to working with Chief Constable
Andy Cooke in the months and years ahead and wish him every success." |
