NEWPORT West MP PAUL Flynn has attacked Gwent’s Police and Crime Commissioner in a stinging blog post, claiming that since he was elected “the failures are certain”.

In a post on his blog last Thursday, Mr Flynn said Gwent PCC Ian Johnston committed to reducing crime and providing value for money – but “neither has been achieved. Most of the gains claimed are nebulous and the failures are certain”.

However, Mr Johnston hit back, saying some of the statements were “misleading and false” and accusing the MP of trying to score “petty political points”.

Elected PCCs were introduced in England and Wales in 2012 with the intention of holding police forces to account.

But Mr Flynn said turnout in Gwent was only 8 per cent, with Newport gaining national attention with a polling booth that nobody voted in.

The blog post continued: “Reviewing Ian Johnston’s term in office reveals a sacked police chief, escalating budget increases and an upsurge in crime. The facts are damning. There was a suspicion that the commissioner would become a second chief constable. This has proved to be the case.

“When the force was criticised by authorised bodies the Commissioner complained that there are too many inspections instead of offering to correct deficiencies. "He appears to have forgotten that his role is representing the public interest to the police not the interest of the police force to the public.”

He said Gwent was one of 18 PCC offices to spend more than the police authority that they replaced.

In his first year in office, the Gwent PCC’s budget increased by £179,671 on that of the old police authority, Mr Flynn said.

He claimed that Mr Johnston regularly criticised cuts to the police force but “with a personal salary of £70,000 and a staff of 17, it is clear that these cuts don’t extend to his office”.

Mr Flynn also cast doubt on how effective schemes launched by the PCC (such as those working with victims) had been. “They appear to be little more than talking shops if no concrete result can be proved for their existence”, he said.

But Mr Johnston hit back, saying: “Statements of this nature by Mr Flynn are among the reasons why I based my election campaign in 2012 on keeping politics out of policing. I am more interested in serving the people of Gwent than in political sniping of this nature.

“His statements are misleading and totally false. The timing of this outburst is not coincidental and is probably linked to the next Police and Crime Commissioner Elections in May 2016.”

He said 8 per cent of the vote in the election was still more than any of the other candidates received and added comparisons between the cost of the old police authority and the PCC office were “simplistic” as the role has expanded, including new responsibility to victims and for drugs intervention.

He said a report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary said Gwent was “well on track to securing the necessary savings to balance the books.”

The crime figures in Gwent are more accurate since his move away from numerical targets, he claimed, so did not necessarily mean crime had increased.

He said victim support service Connect Gwent had already shown benefits with a 3.1 per cent increase in the 'overall satisfaction' of crime victims. Gwent Police’s own internal figures also show that public confidence in the Force has increased by 8 per cent in the last year, he said.

He said he was proud of reopening several police stations and a scheme to award nearly £500,000 to the community from money seized from criminals and from the sale of unclaimed property.

He said: “Mr Flynn has always been opposed to the role of the PCCs. He doesn’t seem to understand that you need to have buy in as there will be at least another two terms for PCCs. It is about time that he understands this and looks to work with us.”