The Association of British Drivers
Richard Brunstrom
The Chief Constable of Controversy
Richard Brunstrom is the Chief Constable of North Wales Police, and was Head of Road Policing of the Association of Chief Police Officers until 2005 when he was ousted after protests from other chief constables.
Previously, Mr Brunstrom featured in our North Wales local issues page, but there is so much to say about him that we had to set up a special page.
Richard Brunstrom is undoubtedly the most controversial policeman in the UK. He has been pilloried in the tabloid press and criticised by motoring organisations for his strident and uncompromising support for speed cameras, and he isn't shy to speak out on other difficult issues such as drugs.
He doesn't hold back from criticising the ABD, either. He has been quoted likening us to the British National Party! He certainly likes colourful language, but his outbursts suggest that he doesn't really think anything through.
We have pulled together a selection of items about Mr Brunstrom, which are shown in chronological order. These speak for themselves, but what does the ABD think of HIM?
We are great supporters of sensible traffic policing, but we can't understand why Richard Brunstrom takes such an extreme and damaging position.
In a democracy, the police are there to enforce the law, not to make it. So we don't expect him to openly condone breaking laws - even ones that he doesn't agree with. (He has recently admitted that he doesn't agree with every speed limit in the land, describing some as "bonkers").
But democratic policing also requires the support of the public, which means balance and common sense is required, especially with laws that most of the public inadvertently break whilst going about their legitimate business.
Most policemen through history have dealt with this kind of difficulty by focussing on the spirit of the law rather than the letter. This approach gains the respect of the public and allows the police to focus on the actual behaviour that the law is supposed to be addressing - dangerous and careless driving. It also discourages bad lawmaking and prevents false road safety arguments being used to justify senseless enforcement.
Richard Brunstrom seems intent on delivering the opposite — bad laws enforced to catch out safe, responsible citizens and justified by contrived arguments that undermine proper road safety. This leads in turn to a lack of respect for the police, for road safety and for society as a whole. And Brunstrom himself is probably the most unpopular policeman in Britain today.
Brunstrom's position is even more inexplicable when he appears to take the opposite view on drugs. The ABD does not take a view on the decriminalisation of drugs — we are simply illustrating the contrast in his approach to the issues of drugs and speed.
Let's look at his record:
Early in his career (date unknown)
A Gorilla in charge of Traffic
On the North Wales Police website, Richard Brunstrom answers some questions about himself. The page includes this:
What has been your funniest moment as an Officer?
As a dare, I agreed to direct traffic in central Brighton in full uniform and a gorilla mask. The very first car that I stopped contained the Chief Constable!
What a pity the then Chief Constable of Sussex didn't have the good judgement to boot him out of the police service there and then for his unprofessional conduct.
See it yourself before they remove it — we have taken a screen print just in case.
December 2001
Drugs
Brunstrom makes his first call for drugs to be legalized.
May 2002
The extent to which Brunstrom is out of touch with the rest of police is highlighted after the Police Federation vote 670 to 30 against decriminalizing drugs.
"At a national police conference in 2002 he was hissed from the podium."
John Stalker former Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police
Daily Express 2004-02-06 |
September 2002
Brunstrom offers to buy heroin for drug addicts 'in a bid to prevent crime'.
North Wales Conservative AM Peter Rogers said:
"The idea is absolutely barmy"
August 2002
Former Home Office minister David Mellor accused Richard Brunstrom of making:"blood-curdling threats to speeding motorists, while wanting heroin legalised on logic that would not persuade a six-year-old".
Thought Police
Brunstrom announces his latest brainwave, something called "Partners against hate crime". This will allow North Wales Police to record any accusations made by anyone about anyone "where the perpetrator's prejudice against any identifiable group of people is a factor in who is victimized".
We'd like the chief constable to ask himself if he considers drivers to be an "identifiable group of people".
July 2003
David versus Goliath
"It is a fact that everyone who has a car will speed. I have broken the speed limit and I defy anyone to say that they haven't. The point is that often speed limits are broken without people having accidents. What we have to focus on is where speed is actually causing accidents."
Steve Mortimore
Assistant Chief Constable
Avon and Somerset Police
Daily Mail 2003-06-05 |
Brunstrom demonstrated the fanatical side of his nature when he went to the ridiculous extreme of calling a press conference to launch a vicious attack on retired bank manager William Shaw for doing 39 in a 30 zone in Acrefair. During this press conference Brunstrom compared this minor speed limit transgression to "teenage yobbishness". He went on to claim that speed enforcement was justified because a fatal accident had occurred nearby; but later admitted to the press that the car involved in the fatal accident was not exceeding the speed limit. He then had the audacity to claim he's not fixated by speeding!!!
Brunstrom did not even have the common courtesy to advise Mr Shaw that he was holding the press conference. Mr Shaw did not find out until he began receiving phone calls from the press and later described his reaction to Brunstrom's "ranting" as "incredulous".
In January 2004, following a complaint by Mr Shaw, the North Wales Police Authority decided not to investigate Brunstrom's actions. Instead they issued a statement: "the committee had concerns about the principle of convening a press conference in this instance and decided to discuss with the chief constable a protocol to cover the convening of press conferences or public meetings in relation to named individuals in future"
Mr Shaw does not intend to see Brunstrom get off that easily. He has now written to the Home Secretary about the matter.
April–August 2003
32,333 down — 271,960 to go
"The normally careful and competent actions of a reasonable individual should be considered legal."
'Establishing Speed Limits - A Case of Majority Rule'
Arizona Department of Transportation, 1999 |
In the five months April to August 2003, North Wales Police caught 32,333 drivers exceeding a speed limit. That's equivalent to over 10% of the drivers who live in North Wales*. If they haven't caught you yet, they soon will.
Are 10% of the population burglars?
Are 10% of the population muggers?
Are 10% of the population shoplifters?
Are 10% of the population criminals?
— of course not.
So what on earth do North Wales Police think they are doing other than alienating the public?
* Source Census 2001, assuming households with one car have one driver, those with two or more, two drivers.
"I fear that if we prosecute more and more motorists and people have a perception that we are being unreasonable then there will be a backlash. We police by consent and need people to have confidence in the criminal justice system. We rely on people to report offences, to be witnesses and to be jurors in the fight against crime. Anything that undermines that support concerns me."
Michael Todd
Chief Constable
Greater Manchester Police.
Manchester Online 2003-07-12 |
5 August 2003
Putting the knife in
Brunstrom appeared on the BBC TV programme "Wales Today". He said there was: "A quite unpleasant thread running through some of the national media and some of the interest groups pursuing an obsessional and irrational scheme to discredit the government's National Safety Camera project. — They're not going to succeed."
He refused to apologise for his hard line on speeding, spouting the infamous line: "It is against the law and there is no excuse for drifting over the limit any more than there is for drifting a knife into someone."
August 2003
Brunstrom's Daughter
The Sun newspaper caught Brunstrom's 18 year-old daughter Kate exceeding a speed limit on the A55 as she headed home from work late one night. We believe that the Sun reporter was standing on a pedestrian footbridge over the A55 eastbound into Colwyn Bay, somewhere the police would not set up a radar trap.
The Chief Constable kept uncharacteristically tight lipped on the incident — at least he did until 2004, when he let slip this comment in an interview with the Times:
“It was extremely unpleasant to send a group of men to follow my daughter at night just because it is impossible to catch me speeding”
Playing clever mind games he tries to imply there was something sinister going on here. In fact they didn't follow her, they just sat on a bridge waiting for her to pass by at a perfectly safe speed. Doubtless he doesn't consider it 'unpleasant' for North Wales Talivan to sit waiting for someone else's daughter.
The Crown Prosecution Service finally decided not to prosecute Kate Brunstrom. They claimed this was because the Sun reporter was not trained in the use of the radar gun.
September 2003
"There are older drivers who should not be on the road, but there are many younger drivers in the same category. It's not necessarily age which is the determining factor."
Sir Stirling Moss
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Brunstrom Turns On The Elderley
Not content with mugging pensioners of £60, Brunstrom is planning another offensive in his one-man war on drivers. He wants to hit pensioners with "impairment meters" which will force them to sit through a 10 minute roadside test to assess their ability to drive. In rural parts of North Wales, cars are an essential lifeline for many pensioners. We have to wonder whether this latest attack is nothing but petty vindictiveness following his spat with retired bank manager William Shaw.
October 2003
Getting personal
Richard Brunstrom launched a personal attack on road safety campaigner Paul Smith of SafeSpeed after Mr Smith criticised Brunstrom for failing to provide adequate answers to basic road safety questions. Brunstrom sent a letter to all Chief Constable and Safety Camera Partnerships urging them not to respond to any enquiry from Mr Smith. Brunstrom, however, failed to realise that not everyone he sent the memo to shares his point of view, and the memo found its way to Mr Smith. Extensive details of the correspondence, and press articles about Brunstrom's actions can be seen on the SafeSpeed website.
December 2003
"A crime is a crime and if I'm speeding and I'm caught, that's my own fault. But I would like equal importance to be given by the chief constable to other crimes, such as muggings, robberies and drugs. I don't think that's happening."
Chris Hughes, Mayor of Colwyn Bay
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The People v Brunstrom
Public support for the police in North Wales continues to diminish as drivers organise a series of protests against Chief Constable Richard Brunstrom's addiction to speed.
Enemy of the State
The BBC's Top Gear programme has labelled Richard Brunstrom an 'enemy of the state' because of his increasingly irrational obsession with persecuting motorists, a policy which threatens to undermine public support for the police.
He was the only nominee for the award.
Asked to comment, the best North Wales Police could come up with was "Things seem to have gone downhill for the BBC since the 1975 Morecambe and Wise Christmas special."
Apparently being the only police force in Britain whose Chief Constable is widely despised by the public doesn't cause them any concern.
January 2004
The 37mph letter
With the people of North Wales planning protests against excessive speed enforcement by the police, any rational Chief Constable would have the sense to keep his head below the parapet for a while. Not so anti-speed fanatic Richard Brunstrom. His latest idea is to start sending letters to people caught at speeds between 35 and 37 in a 30 zone, the letter will apparently warn drivers they've been caught (if you've had one, do send us a copy). Penalty notices are apparently issued at 38mph or above, but police say those below 38 have been slipping 'through the net'.
February 2004
The Police State of North Wales
"The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding."
Justice Louis D. Brandeis, US Supreme Court, 1928
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Brunstrom's Thought Police are continuing their headlong crash-dive to destroy police-public relations in North Wales. Felicity Elphick, a 56-year-old businesswoman and prospective Tory candidate, is the latest driver to be maligned by North Wales police.
After speaking at a public meeting she received a threatening letter from Acting Chief Supt Geraint Anwyl in which the police maliciously mis-quote her in an attempt to discredit her. Fortunately, the organisers of the meeting had the good sense to video the event, proving the police are lying. The full and pathetic saga is told by the Daily Post:
The ABD has obtained a copy of Anwyl's letter.
February 2004
Don't Bite The Hand That Feeds You
Brunstrom is insisting that all the members of the North Wales Police Authority submit to finger printing and DNA testing after someone leaked a police memo to the press. The North Wales Police Authority, which includes magistrates and councillors, are the people who appointed him as Chief Constable. Some of them are doubtless starting to question that decision now.
February 2004
Drugs Again - This time Heroin
Brunstrom makes the astounding call for Heroin to be legalized.
His comments were condemned by Tarique Ghaffur, Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police:
"Any suggestion that we should relax our approach is not only dangerous but divisive and undermines the hard work of police officers in London who are trying to stamp out the evil of heroin through enforcement, education and partnership with those communities who are most vulnerable."
Tarique Ghaffur Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police
The Scotsman 2004-02-06 |
and by Andy Hayman, Chief Constable of Norfolk Constabulary:
"This is Richard Brunstrom's personal opinion. ACPO does not support either the legalisation or open sale of any controlled drug. It is not the role of the police service to advocate measures that require expert medical and scientific opinion."
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and by John Stalker, former Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police:
"What have the good people of North Wales done to deserve a Chief Constable like Richard Brunstrom?" ...
"At a national police conference in 2002 he was hissed from the podium." ...
"I regard him as dangerously out of touch with reality."
John Stalker former Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police
Daily Express 2004-02-06 |
27th February 2004
Forces Gather Against Him
The Daily Mail has reported that the Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police have formally complained to the chairman of ACPO about Brunstrom. They've asked for a review as to whether he should remain head of road policing.
At least six other Chief Constables are said to privately believe he has become a liability.
One un-named senior police officer is quoted as saying:
"Every time Mr Brunstrom opens his mouth, he convinces Middle England they are the targets of the police rather than the criminals who are robbing and pillaging them. For many of us, his views are completely nonsense and are alienating us from the people we want on our side. There will be a loud cheer if he stands down."
The full article can be seen on the SafeSpeed website.
March 2004
Brunstrom the Rapper?
Brunstrom and his deputy Clife Wolfenden performed an Eminem-style rap at the launch of North Wales Police's Black Police Association. This was later criticized as 'patronizing' by the Commission for Racial Equality.
Read the Rap on Pistonheads
28th March 2004
It's Not Just Drivers He Bullies
The wife of North Wales deputy chief constable Bill Brereton has claimed that Brunstrom has tried to bully her husband out of his job. Her complaint, which followed a visit to Mr Brereton's home by Brunstrom, has led to an official investigation by the Professional Standards Committee. Mrs Brereton's letter of complaint was leaked to the press, another sign of just how unpopular Brunstrom is within his own ranks.
Mr Brereton, a keen motorcyclist, suffered a terrible family tragedy in May 2001 when he witnessed his 20 year old daughter fall from her motorbike and suffer fatal injuries. He has previously been the spokesman on police driving for the Association of Chief Police Officers.
21st April 2004
'Meet the Mad Mullah'
Brunstrom has been interviewed by the Daily Telegraph.
He denies that he made the comment about "drifting a knife into someone" attributed to him by the BBC on 5th August 2003. Presumably the BBC have a recording of this programme and can prove it one way or the other.
He thinks that some speed limits are too low, but still thinks it is your fault if you get caught in such a limit.
He thinks all cars should be limited to a speed of around 90mph.
He thinks cameras are inevitable because there aren't enough police officers to manage the problem. Err, well put more traffic officers on the road Richard!
He thinks that Ken Livingstone is "an outstandingly brave prophet, well ahead of his time". Oh dear, this interview was supposed to improve your public image was it Richard?
He finishes with "If our society does decide that 3,000 is an acceptable figure, I can pack up and go home to a much easier life."
Anti-car campaigners are very fond of emotional arguments, but very short on perspective. Whilst no-one agrees that 3,000 deaths a year on our roads is an ‘acceptable’ figure, any pragmatist (which Brunstrom claims to be) can see that we will never reduce that figure to anywhere near zero in a country where every day some 59 million people and 31 million vehicles use 380,000km of roads.
The numbers rapidly become so large that you can't comprehend them, but let's say that on average every driver drives 20 miles each day, with maybe 10 hazards per mile — that's well over 2 trillion potential accidents per year.
There are reasonable measures you can take to reduce accidents which will be supported by the public, and there are unreasonable measures which will incite anger, contempt for the law, hatred of the police, and actually serve to increase danger of the roads.
Brunstrom still fails to see the difference.
Daily Telegraph — Meet the Mad Mullah
June 2004
Brunstrom v Blair
Richard Brunstrom has a go at Tony Blair for not voicing support for speed cameras. Blair has always been quiet on anti-car issues. He first delegated anti-car policy to John Prescott, who unsurprisingly made a hash of it. Even John eventually realised it would be a good career move to do something else. The task was then delegated to a string of un-remembered transport ministers.
Blair knows full well how unpopular anti-car policy is, and is not so daft as to tarnish his image with it. Brunstrom obviously doesn't have this much gumption.
Brunstrom claims that the reason deaths are not going down is because he's not allowed to hide speed cameras. No Richard, it's because you're obsessed with speeding and ignore all other causes of accidents.
BBC — Blair urged to back speed cameras
July 2004
Council Join The Opposition
Gwynedd County Council have joined a long list of people opposed to Brunstrom's policies. The council has written to Brunstrom urging him to reconsider his policies on speeding, drugs and community policing.
Western Mail — Council questions policing policies
August 2004
The Man With Two Brains
Richard Brunstrom has been giving the ABD a few plugs in the national press recently. Naturally, he isn't very complimentary — but you know what they say about publicity!
On 20th July 2004, he criticised none other than the Today programme for giving us airtime!
"Pressure groups such as the Association of British Drivers are unduly influential. They have less than 3,000 members, yet they are given enormous attention by the media. They appear on Radio 4's Today programme. It's ludicrous — this is a bunch of crackpots being given prime airtime. It's just because the media love a controversy."
Now we weren't aware that media censorship was the responsibility of Chief Constables but anything is possible these days.
A few weeks later, (10th August) he was singing a very different tune in The Times:
"Some of the attacks by groups like the ABD are so clearly crazy that it helps cement an alliance in your favour. It's like having the BNP come out against you".
So, does Brunstrom want to silence us, or does he want us to speak out? It seems he can't make up his mind!
Either way, its clear he believes we can no longer be ignored — and thats good news. Even better news is the way he attacks us — comparisons with far right groups and criticism of the media for allowing vital road safety issues to be debated can only help the ABD's cause and make him look even more foolish and isolated.
August 2004
Jolly to the land of Oz
It is revealed that Brunstrom sent two officers to Australia, at a cost of £2000, to see if they could pick up any tips from Victoria Police on how to alienate drivers even more.
ABD Press Release 411 — We Are Not Amused
September 2004
Pistols at Dawn?
Brunstrom has challenged Jeremy Clarkson to meet him in North Wales. Top Gear invited Brunstrom to Surrey to appear on the programme, but Brunstrom insisted they come to North Wales.
Daily Post — OK Clarkson, come here and say that
October 2004
MCN grilling
Brunstrom looses his cool when a Motorcycle News interviewer points out that he's not actually answering the questions he was asked...
MCN — We grill top speed cop
3 November 2004
"I think you are right to say I have, in your terms, an obsession with speeding - I am proud of it."
Richard Brunstrom |
Obsession with speeding
Whilst giving evidence to MPs on the Welsh affairs select committee at Westminster, Brunstrom admits that he has an 'obsession' with speeding, but denied this compromised his effectiveness against serious crime.
Does this mean that it has finally dawned on him that speeding isn't a serious crime?
BBC — Police chief: my speed obsession
17 November 2004
The Law Doesn't Apply To Me
Brunstrom infuriated his neighbours by parking his estate car and trailer on the pavement outside his house for two hours whilst he pruned some trees. One irate resident said:
"I'm glad he cut that tree down as it was overhanging the pavement, but parking his large estate car on the footpath, right up to the wall, just isn't on, I often push my grandson in his pram along there, and I would have to go onto the road, as would somebody in a wheel chair, maybe Mr Brunstrom should think more about pedestrian safety rather than chasing motorists all the time."
After photographs appeared in the local paper, the police reportedly swooped on nearby roads slapping tickets on other vehicles parked on the pavement. How childish can the man get?
12 December 2004
Born Again Constable?
At the annual lunch of the Institute of Advanced Motorists, Brunstrom gave the first indication that he is coming to his senses. He spoke out against the many speed limits which have lost the respect of drivers:
“Every one of us can think of a speed limit that appears to be completely barmy, utterly bonkers. And if you think it’s bonkers you are much less likely to comply with it,”
“What we need are speed limits that have credibility in the public mind. We need to have a root and branch reform of every speed limit throughout the country.”
Richard Brunstrom |
He also said that speed cameras should merely be part of a wider solution to speeding.
“The solution is not ever more draconian enforcement.”
Richard Brunstrom |
The Times — Speed mullah tries a little tolerance
It is now up to him to prove that these promising comments translate to a genuine change in attitude.
10 January 2005
A Wonderful Year?
In his new year message to staff, Brunstrom declared that 2004 had been "a wonderful year" for the police. However, not everyone agreed ...
Evening Leader — ‘Over-the-Top Police Chief Out of Touch’
11 January 2005
2005 off to a bad start
An attempt to prosecute a former police officer for allegedly leaking documents to the press collapsed after the prosecution decided not to pursue the matter. Brunstrom was waiting to give evidence at the time.
There have now been calls for an enquiry into the whole fiasco which is estimated to have cost up to £150,000.
The case relates to the incident in Feb 2004 when someone leaked an official report stating former deputy chief constable Bill Brereton had been accused of bullying. Mr Brereton's wife later accused Brunstrom of trying to bully her husband out of a job.
Don't miss next week's exciting episode of North Wales Police Farce.
13 March 2005
Miracles never Cease
Brunstrom has decided that more speed cameras won't improve road safety, and is calling on plans to install 6000 more to be scrapped, though he stopped short of calling for the existing 6000 to be scrapped.
We would say we've been telling him so since he became Chief Constable of North Wales, but it would be too much to expect him to give anyone else the credit for his earth shattering discovery.
This amazing U-turn comes just 236 days after he proclaimed:
"My message is very simple - this debate is now over. It is beyond doubt that they prevent death and injury."
Instead of more cameras, Brunstrom is now supporting vehicle activated speed warning signs. These have been shown to result in greater speed reductions than cameras.
Sunday Mirror — No More Speed Cameras Says Top Cop
ABD Press release 433 — ACPO in Speed Camera Disarray After Brunstrom Speaks Out
27 March 2005
Taxi Drivers 'Anti Social'
Brunstrom has decided that taxi drivers are anti-social. He's told them not to sound their horn to let people know when they pull up outside, and he threatened them with the anti-social behaviour order legislation that was introduced to deal with yobs.
The clear and absurd abuse of this legislation is yet another sign that Brunstrom has an irrational desire to throw the book at drivers over trivialities.
28 March 2005
Brunstrom Speaks Out
In an interview with Wales on Sunday, a journalist asked him:
You have been called the "most unpopular policeman in the UK". Why?
Avoiding a direct answer like any good politican, Brunstrom replied:
I am quite happy to be unpopular with those people who seem to believe that they have a right to ignore speed limits and thereby endanger us all. I have no intention of backing off.
The ABD does not believe drivers have a right to ignore speed limits. However, like Mr Brunstrom we know that many speed limits are 'barmy', and that such speed limits discourage drivers from observing speed limits that are correctly set. We have called for all speed limits to be set by experienced police officers and road traffic engineers, not by politicians.
Secondly, it is extremely dangerous to enforce speed limits rigidly. There is nothing magical about 30mph (it is after all equal to 48.27 km/h). It is patently absurd to suggest that a driver is automatically safe at 29mph and automatically dangerous at 31mph.
Most of the claims made about the dangers of speed are fabricated or maliciously false, and are pure propaganda from a government that hates drivers. This constant barrage of anti-speed propaganda has caused some people to become fixated with speed to the point of religious fanaticism.
Before the invention of speed cameras, the police used their discretion when prosecuting excessive speed, and only did so when it allowed them a simple means of prosecuting a driver who was also driving in a dangerous manner. Now, that discretion has been flushed down the toilet, and responsible law-abiding citizens driving in a perfectly safe manner are being persecuted. This is turning the public against the police, and it is extremely worrying that Brunstrom still fails to graps what the consequences will be for society if he does not back off.
Asked "Are you out of touch with public opinion?", Brunstrom finished his answer with
“My job is to lead public opinion as much as to follow it.”
And there, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have the root cause of the problem.
You are a civil servant Mr Brunstrom. You act as the appointed representative of the public in enforcing the law — law determined by the elected government of the land — not by you. You police only by the consent of the public. The public have given you no authority whatsoever to lead their opinion.
2005-10-04
And Now For Something Completely Different
Brunstrom has announced that he is stepping down as head of roads policing for ACPO. He claimed that it was time for someone else to have a go; but we suspect that he has at last seen the writing on the wall and wants to distance himself from 'road safety' policies that have failed.
"We are thinking of building a cell block above the Dartford tunnel so we can just drag people out of their car."
Richard Brunstrom |
2005-10-09
One to One
In one of the most revealing interviews of Brunstrom yet, Jasper Gerard discovers yet more sinister plans to persecute drivers.
2006-04-30
'Dangerous Criminals'
In a speech to councillors in Flintshire, Brunstrom branded drivers who get caught for speeding 3 times as 'dangerous criminals'. Incredibly, he then went on to confess he had inadvertently exceeded a 30mph speed limit as he entered it from a 40mph limit, and stated that had a speed camera van been there he would have been caught. Twice more and he might start to join the dots.
2006-07-30
Brunstrom's Blog
Brunstrom has at least indicated that he's living in the 21st Century by starting a blog.
On his 17/07/2006 effort, Andrew Gimson writing in the Daily Telegraph commented:
"This is manic behaviour of a most alarming kind. A man in authority has allowed himself to become immersed in petty detail. Mr Brunstrom has long been known for his enthusiasm for speed cameras, and has proved quite unable to see that it is simply not fitting for a man in his position to engage in what looks like a general war on motorists. It is a question of preserving a sense of proportion. The man at the top must be able to distinguish minor offences from serious crimes. He must on no account fall for the illusion that because he is busy, he is doing his job."
2006-10-09
Still Out of Touch With Reality
In his blog of 9th October 2006, Brunstrom has described a woman caught exceeding the speed limit whilst on her way to a 'speed awareness course' as a "dangerous idiot". Surprisingly, he did not name her, which at least proves he's capable of learning from previous mistakes (see July 2003). Unsurprisingly, the exact circumstances of where she was caught, and at what speed, were not revealed.
He went on to claim that speeding is a major cause of death on the road, despite a government report published only a few weeks earlier showing that exceeding the speed limit is in fact a contributory factor in only 5% of accidents.
It is not her who should go on a speed awareness course but Brunstrom himself.
2007-04-26
Crass Insensitivity
Brunstrom showed journalists photographs of a motorcyclist decapitated in an accident in 2003 on the B5105 near Llanfihangel Glyn-Mytyr. He claimed that excessive speed caused the accident, but as is usual with such claims, details of precisely how the accident happened were conspicuous by their absence.
Incredibly, police did not seek permission from the deceased man's relatives to show the photographs to the press. Of significance was the fact that the biker was wearing a T-Shirt saying "Piss off and catch some real criminals". One has to wonder if Brunstrom was not in fact delighted at the opportunity the tragic accident afforded him.
"It is a matter of serious concern that someone in charge of a police force should not have the common sense and decency to seek the victim's family's consent to use such images."
Northern Echo |
Several days later, North Wales Police issued a terse statement saying they had written to the family of the dead man apologizing for their actions. Pointedly, the statement came from the police force, not Brunstrom himself.
A statement from the family, issued through Safespeed, called upon Brunstrom to resign.
Over 3500 people signed a petition on the Prime Minister's website calling for Brunstrom to be sacked:
We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to Remove the North Wales Police chief from office as soon as possible.
2007-11-09
Little Comfort
The Independent Police Complaints Commission found Brunstrom not guilty of any criminal act over the use of photographs of the deceased motorcyclist, but criticised him for failing to warn the family the images would be shown. It also condemned North Wales Police for a lack of planning, risk assessment and damage limitation actions and said it needed "the highest quality advice".
As if further proof of Brunstrom's detachment from reality were needed, the report also refers to an email from Brunstrom to a police press officer saying that photos initially planned for the presentation were not "gruesome" enough, but that the photos of the deceased motorcyclist were "outstandingly good".
MPs Elfyn Llwyd and Martyn Jones have joined the growing chorus of voices calling on Brunstrom to quit.
2008-10-19
HEDDLU
Amusing comment from Mark Withers of Wales on Sunday on the latest fiasco:
2009-01-31
Brunstrom Solves The Wrong Problem
As if wishing to demonstrate that he has learned nothing from his experience with the photographs of the decapitated motorcyclist, Brunstrom has come out with another one of his ideas.
This latest one is to remove wrecked cars from the scene of accidents with dead bodies still trapped inside them. The cars would then be taken somewhere for the bodies to be removed. How relatives of the dead might feel about their loved ones being carted off on the back of a truck does not seem to have occured to him. We can`t say we`re surprised.
Brunstrom explained that his proposal was intended to get traffic moving as quickly as possible, somewhat ironic given that it was a manual written by him that created the problem of roads being closed for excessively long periods in the first place. The closures are due to intensive accident investigation demanded by the new manual.
Moreover, before Brunstrom's manual, removing dead bodies from vehicles was never the cause of the kind of closure delays we now see. So his suggestion is unrelated to the cause of the problem, proving once again he is detached from reality.
If only he was detached from the police force.
What can be done?
Despite some signs that Mr Brunstrom's views were changing, we agree with the Chief Constables who think that he is a liability, and seriously threatens to undermine public support for the police.
The fiasco with the photographs demonstrates that his fanatical obsession with 'speeding' takes precedence over any concept he may have of 'professionalism'.
"I regard him as dangerously out of touch with reality."
John Stalker
former Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police
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If you live in North Wales:
Do you think Brunstrom should be sacked in the interests of police-public relations?
Write to the North Wales Police Authority, your local councillor, your Assembly Member, your MP, and the press, and let them know your opinion.
Go along to your local meeting of the North Wales Police Authority's "Police and Community Consultative Groups" and make your views known.
If you live elsewhere:
Previously on this page, we asked people to write to their Chief Constable if they agreed with the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, and the Commissioner of the City of London Police, that Brunstrom's position as Head of Road Policing of the Association of Chief Police Officers should be reviewed.
As you will have read above, he has stepped down.
There is no way of knowing whether your efforts played a part, but they certainly didn't encourage him to stay. Thank you to all concerned.
We had hoped that his replacement would come from a police traffic background and thus have a better understanding of roads policing. Unfortunately they appointed Med Hughes, CC of South Yorkshire, who has thrice been caught by speed cameras and still claims to think they are a good idea.
Elsewhere on the ABD website:
External Links:
