Watch back: Lincolnshire PCC Marc Jones discusses Lincoln ‘zombies’, road deaths and football policing

Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner Marc Jones took a number of questions from readers of The Lincolnite live, covering topics such as illegal drugs, road collisions, terror threats and policing at football matches.

The interview took place on the afternoon of Thursday, September 22 and was broadcast to thousands on The Lincolnite’s Facebook page.

Watch the highlights of the interview below:

Here’s a break down of five things we learnt from the interview:

• Marc Jones agreed that drug taking on the streets of the county is an ongoing issue, but that patterns and the types of drugs being taken have changed. “Now, with these new drugs [such as so-called Spice and Mamba] people are spending £5 to get high rather than £25. They are leaving users completely debilitated.” He added that he understood how the term ‘zombies’ became a well-used reference to drug takers, but that agencies needed to work together to help those suffering from addiction.
• The force has consistently lobbied the government for a fairer funding deal. Marc warned: “If we get no additional grant from government, by the year 2019/20 we will have a hole of around £6.5 million and we do not know how we are going to fill it.” When asked if there would be a decline in the number of ‘bobbies on the beat’, Marc said he had retained the force’s 1,100 target for officers since he was elected just over a year ago, but that deployment of staff was consistently assessed.
• “More than 500 people have died or been seriously injured on the county’s road in a 12 month period”, said Marc following the announcement the city will host its first summit to address road deaths. “Agencies spend around £1 million every time there is a death on the roads”, he added.
• Following recent terror attacks in the country, Marc gave assurances that Lincolnshire has got appropriate resources to respond to attacks and threats.
• One reader asked: “Why do police officers treat football fans like animals”, to which the PCC added his shock that following the recent bomb attack at Parsons Green, a fan threw a smoke bomb onto the pitch at Sincil bank, sating police had no choice but to act. He added: “I was disappointed to hear fans were trying to get at each other outside the pitch and I have to disagree with the comment.”

Watch the full interview here: