David is currently the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for the West Midlands and was elected in a by-election in 2014.
David was born in Solihull and attended Chapel Fields School and Tudor Grange GS. Later he trained as a teacher at St Peter’s College, Saltley and taught mathematics in inner-city schools in Birmingham, Leicester and Plymouth.
He was a councillor on Solihull council from 1970-74 and again from 2010 – 2014 when he was Cabinet Member for Transport for a year.
In 1992, he was elected as MP for Plymouth Devonport, a seat previously held by former Labour Leader Michael Foot. He served 8 years as minister from 1997 to 2005, being both a government whip and transport minister. He stood down in 2005 and returned to live in Olton.
As PCC, he has put the needs of victims of crime at the heart of his strategy. Also, he has recognised the vital role the police play in the economic welfare of the region. He has pioneered the use of public hearings into matters of great concern to the public, the first of which was following a prolonged closure of the M6 in Feb 2016. This brought together the police, Highways England and Local Councils to improve joint working on incidents. Recently he has taken on the big car manufacturers to challenge them over the security of their vehicles in response to the surge in vehicle theft.
As well as getting a ban on Zombie knives, David has taken a lead nationally on violent crime and exclusions from school which are feeding that violence. He has produced a powerful set of recommendations on drug policy which he is implementing in the West Midlands to reduce the harm to individuals whilst tackling the criminality that is associated with drugs.
David will be working hard in the next year to ensure a Labour PCC succeeds him in May 2020
