In the present shock about phone hacking, the News of the Screws and the police bungs, it makes me wonder if this sort of thing goes on in Manchester. For instance, does John Scheerhout, the crime reporter for the Manchester Evening News (MEN) pay police officers for information?

As the row over phone hacking rumbles on we have to ask what is the difference between what the met has been up to and what GMP have been about.

As the row over phone hacking rumbles on we have to ask what is the difference between what the met has been up to and what GMP have been about.

The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has resigned, and is to be the subject of a complaint referred to the IPCC, which basically says that he had over all responsibility for the actions of his officers, who should have been investigating the Phone Hacking allegations. Now doesn't that sound familiar? Yeah you got it that is precisely the complaint that David Abbott made to the GMPA about Chief Officer Peter Fahy.

Up to the present date, GMPA have only got as far as asking if David would like an officer of ACPO level to investigate his complaint against Fahy. What? Did they think he would like a PCSO to look into tan allegation against the Chief Officer? We have also seen in another article that GMP are not exactly jumping about to investigate the complaint they were forced to record as a result of the Judicial Review.

Not like London then is it where senior officers have resigned faster than ten pins falling. Up to now the complaint re Barnard has also targeted the behaviour in handling the complaint made by David Abbott of the senior officers in the PSB.

The original complaint was handled by Supt. Buchanan who has evidently now retired. His investigation did not actually investigate much, and did not even bother taking a statement from Carrie Abbott, who was a material witness in the complaint. Quick whitewash there then.

The complaint was then remade about the activities of Barnard both in the investigation and the trial not to mention after the trial. This was first dealt with by a Chief Supt. Dave Keller who one assumes was the head of the PSB. He told David Abbott that the complaint could not be handled because the matter was sub-judice. Was that true? Nah it was a lie. The law says that a complaint can be investigated whilst another investigation is ongoing. Keller should know the law in his position. He went on to say that neither GMP nor the GMPA would converse with me further. Excuse me? So now a Chief Super in the police is speaking for the authority that is supposed to over look the police? That is completely out of order and brings into question the independence of the GMPA

Next we had Supt. Mike Freeman, who had spent some considerable time working with the IPCC on ways to improve the customers experience of the complaints procedure. He learnt a lot didn't he. Freeman stated that David Abbott was not a person able to make a complaint about Barnard, because he was the father of a police officer and because he had not been adversely affected by the actions of Barnard. There was much more but this was all part and parcel, of the department supposed to investigate complaints about police officers, doing everything they could to protect one of their own. They were senior officers in the PSB and Barnard worked in the PSB prior to his promotion to neighbourhood policing. It says a lot about the institutionalised arrogance of these people, that they think they can get away with it.

It is the law, that a complaint against a police officer that might result in disciplinary or criminal proceedings, must be recorded or reasons given in writing to the complainant, as to why it is not being recorded. Once the decision to record the complaint has been made and, if it might result in criminal or disciplinary proceedings, then local resolution of that complaint is no longer an option.

So where is the difference between the Metropolitan Police and GMP? Well quite clearly, the political and media pressure that has been brought to bear on the Met has had some quite extraordinary outcomes.

It is fair to say that there is little or no media pressure on GMP to the unhealthy closeness of the MEN and GMP .

Is that corruption? We say yes it is, because there must be a reason why the MEN do not tackle GMP or Fahy over matters that the public have a right to know, such as Fahy being under investigation and several senior officers of the PSB being under investigation. In light of what is taking place in London perhaps the MEN might wish to reconsider its position, and actually report the news that GMP have a major problem in the PSB and that the Chief Officer of the force is under investigation. Or are they simply ignoring it in the hope that it will all go away and they can carry on the cosy relationship with GMP they have long enjoyed. What the public have a right to know is whether or not this cosy relationship has been as a result of money changing hands in the way that it has in London.

Will we ever know? Not if the MEN and reporters like John Scheerhout have their way.

One might hope that good may yet come out of the issues in London, that might spread to the rest of the country and that GMP might clean up their act and sweep the corruption out of the PSB. Certainly what we all hope is that Fahy is not even considered for the Met Commissioner job. Go on GMP, we dare you to do the right thing.

“At this preliminary point I am struggling to understand quite how they elevated him to high risk given that he would most definitely not score at all on many of the items of equally actuarial static 99.

Lastly and perhaps much more importantly I note the various, not entirely convincing, statements from the probation along the lines of them being guided by Social Services view but at the same time, almost a requirement from them for him to stay in the Probation hostel to the end of his licence period”

In an article that has no rhyme or Reason other than self aggrandisement, The arch Clown of GMP tells the readers of the Manchester Evening Lies that he won't apply for the vacant job of Met Commissioner. As we all know at Justice4Kj, and that includes reporters from the MEN, he can't really apply for that job as he has a complaint of Misconduct in Public Office recorded against him thanks to David Abbott.