HMIC a vital critical friend

Police and Crime Commissioner Candidate for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight David Goodall has met with the HMIC’s Inspector for
the Hampshire Constabulary Zoë Billingham to discuss how the HMIC works with the force to improve policing and how they plan to work with the new Police and Crime Commissioner.
The Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) inspects and reports on the efficiency and effectiveness of police forces in England and Wales, as well as specified national police agencies, like the Ministry of Defence Police.

HMIC publish reports on policing matters as varied as anti-social behaviour (ASB), value for money and the August 2011 disorders. HMIC provide authoritative information to allow the public, their elected representatives and forces themselves to compare the performance of their force against others, and their evidence is used to drive improvements in the service provided to the public.
HMIC is independent of government and the police:

HMIC outline their inspection programme in their annual business plan, which is published on the HMIC website following approval from the Home Secretary (in accordance with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011).
The HMIC website is also where you can download all the inspection reports and data that they publish (see www.hmic.gov.uk)
After the hour long meeting at Police HQ in Winchester David Goodall commented that:-

The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 enables Police and Crime Commissioners to commission HMIC to conduct inspections on the whole force or a particular area of a force. This will give Police and Crime Commissioners the opportunity to benchmark a force against itself and/or other forces.
HMIC has a proven track record and expertise in intrusive and supportive inspections of policing, so it is well positioned to deliver a range of services to Police and Crime Commissioners in support of their scrutiny function.
These services include:

The meeting also highlighted the fact that under the act, unlike the current Police Authority, the new Police and Crime Commissioner will not be open to HMIC inspection, commenting on this David Goodall said:-