Avon and Somerset’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Sue Montstevens has been outlining her priorities and views on policing ahead of the PCC election on May 3.

She told villagers in Mark that she had no command and control over the police but she “holds the chief constable to account.” She has previously told the Weekly News that her plan to close Burnham-on-Sea’s police station was in order to save money and to put the saving into more officers with a police “foot print” in the library instead.

At the Mark annual meeting this month she told villagers that she wanted to improve the police service through getting feedback from residents.

“One the things the public say to me is they never get the opportunity to challenge our senior police officers,” she said, “so every two months I have gone out with senior police officers and we have gone out to do forums to say what they have done and answer questions. The public may not like the answers they get from the police but they like the idea they can challenge senior officers.”

She said they had to listen to the quiet voices who “maybe people like you who don’t know how to lobby people like me.” However she said she was not operational but had to worry about the money.

“We have had a 30 percent cut from central Government,” she said, “and we have lost 500 officers as a result.” Despite Government promises not to touch police funding she said it “was a lot of smoke and mirrors” and the public “shouldn’t trust these politicians” and she still had to find £17m in savings.

She has been sharply criticised by the Conservative candidate in the PCC election Mark Weston who said the Burnham-on-Sea police station shouldn’t close unless a new custody suite was found in the town. He said: “Neighbourhood policing is vital to keep our communities safe and our police stations play an important role in this. I want the planned closures and downgrades halted now that the financial situation has improved so that we can re-assess. I want to maintain a strong network of stations to serve our rural towns and villages. I want to see our neighbourhood, patrol and investigations teams to be strengthened to provide the support that our towns need.”

He also said the PCC had become too big with more cash being spent on public relations and administration and that it now cost more than the old police board.

Other candidates standing on May 3 are Kerry Barker for Labour, Aaron Foot for UKIP and Kevin Phillips who is standing as an independent.

What are your views on the PCC? Email harry.mottram@nqsw.co.uk