New Justice Secretary no stranger to police reform
The first ever female Justice Secretary has been appointed in the continued radical shake-up of the Cabinet by new Prime Minister Theresa May.
The first ever female Justice Secretary has been appointed in the continued radical shake-up of the Cabinet by new Prime Minister Theresa May.
On Thursday (July 14) Rt Hon Liz Truss MP was entrusted with the office of Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice when Michael Gove became the latest of many high profile casualties of Mrs Mays reshuffle.
It is the first time a woman has held the position and is confirmation that the new Cabinet will see more women in senior roles after Amber Rudd was made Home Secretary and Justine Greening Education Secretary.
It also marks a meteoric rise for Ms Truss, who only entered Parliament in 2010.
She will now take charge of radical change initiated by her predecessor Mr Gove with the backing of former Prime Minister David Cameron.
The Justice and Home departments had been male bastions until Jacqui Smith became the first woman Home Secretary in 2007. And Mrs May became its longest serving incumbent for more than 60 years before her successful campaign to take over in Number 10.
Ms Truss joins the new Home Secretary in a formidable all-female team to lead the fight against crime and spearhead the continued battle to bring down reoffending rates.
Although Ms Truss may not be well known to most police leaders, she has had significant influence on forces in the recent past. In 2009, as Deputy Director of the think tank Reform, she was highly critical of the structure of policing under the then Labour government with her recommendations soon adopted by the Conservative-led coalition in 2010.
Criminals are the main beneficiaries of England and Wales` poorly organised forces, she wrote in an article for The Telegraph.
For now, there is little incentive for the 43 police forces to arrest a kingpin of a people-trafficking gang since they are relentlessly targeted on burglary numbers.
She added: The experience of the Serious Organised Crime Agency has shown that setting up a national agency unconnected with on-the-ground policing will not solve the problem. It tends to focus on James Bond style international activities, rather than the grunt work of investigation and surveillance.
Ms Truss is the MP for South West Norfolk, the daughter of a Professor of Mathematics and a nurse/teacher.
After graduating in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University, Ms Truss worked for Shell and Cable and Wireless, becoming a management accountant. She then worked for Reform between 2008 and 2010.
She was made a junior minister at the Department for Education in 2012 and Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2014.