Cuts to police numbers, proposals for directly elected Commissioners, and the wooing of US ‘supercop’ Bill Bratton are all evidence of a new and much more adversarial relationship between the Conservatives and the police

The recent riots in London and other English cities have thrown the government’s plans for reforming police services and cutting police numbers into sharp relief. Traditionally the Tories have been tough on law and order issues and so aligned closely with the police. Yet Tim Newburn argues that David Cameron and Tory ministers are clearly behaving in ways that express a belief that the UK’s police services are ripe for reform.