Campaign News
Lawyer is Labour candidate for Gwent police commissioner
5:17pm Friday 3rd February 2012
A SOLICITOR and a former Labour parliamentary candidate is putting himself forward for his party’s nomination for police and crime commissioner for Gwent.
Hamish Sandison, former Labour parliamentary candidate for Monmouth, has won endorsements from a range of serving Labour politicians including Paul Murphy, Jessica Morden and the Assembly’s presiding officer Rosemary Butler.
He is the latest Gwent name to put himself forward for the role after Ron Davies, former Secretary of State for Wales and current Caerphilly councillor, said he was interested.
The election is set to take place on November 22.
Mr Sandison said: "If elected as the PCC for Gwent I am committed to using this powerful office to hold the chief constable to account".
He added: "I would also take very seriously the wider role of the police and crime commissioner, not only in helping to prevent crime from happening in the first place, but also tacking the causes of crime."
Mr Sandison is a solicitor by profession - qualified as a lawyer in the UK and the United States - and has lived near Usk for 25 years.
Former Wales and Northern Ireland minister Paul Murphy, MP for Torfaen, said Mr Sandison has the "legal skills, the political experience, the business acumen and the personal gravitas to make a very formidable commissioner for Gwent."
Newport East MP Jessica Morden, Islwyn MP Chris Evans, Blaenau Gwent MP Nick Smith, former Labour Monmouth MP Huw Edwards, Torfaen leader Bob Wellington, and Newport West AM Rosemary Butler have all endorsed Mr Sandison’s candidacy.
Nominations for Labour candidates to the police commissioner election close on February 17, with a candidate for Gwent due to be selected in May.
Dates for final nominations to be put forward for the election are yet to be announced.