HAMILTON, Bermuda (CMC) — Victor Marshall, a leading authority on improving professional standards within police services has flown to Bermuda to help formulate plans to modernise the Bermuda Police Service’s (BPS) disciplinary regime.

Marshall, the professional standards coordinator for the Police Superintendents’ Association of England and Wales, will meet key stakeholders in the BPS and the community to explore how the present system — which is more than 40 years old­­ — can be updated.

Marshall was responsible for implementing the recommendations of an independent review of the police disciplinary system in England and Wales, and creating the legislation and regulatory framework for the system.

A retired detective superintendent, Marshall also advised ministers and forces on all aspects of the police complaints system, and dealing with misconduct, unsatisfactory performance and attendance procedures.

His visit follows an announcement in last month’s Throne Speech that the Bermuda Government would introduce legislation to replace the old “out of step” discipline process contained in The Police (Discipline) Orders 1975.

Commissioner of Police Michael DeSilva has acknowledged there was concern about force morale in light of recent redundancies and uncertainty over negotiations between the Police Association and Government.

DeSilva said a new disciplinary regime was “vital” to the BPS.

“We need to change the paradigm away from solely punishment. At the moment, an officer who commits gross misconduct and an officer who is late both go through the same disciplinary procedure. That is why we need a disciplinary code.

“Our single performance indicator is public confidence, in other words, how safe people feel. That feeling of safety comes from how we carry out our duties and whether when an officer’s conduct is called to account we have a system people believe in,” he said.

“If an officer is disciplined, cautioned or found not guilty there has to be confidence that the system has worked properly.”

DeSilva’s comments come after a landmark Supreme Court ruling last month against the office of the Commissioner of Police for discriminating against a British police officer who was unfairly passed over for promotion.

A month earlier, the

Royal Gazette newspaper reported how morale within the BPS had been “seriously affected” because of confidential data detailing the performance of contracted officers being circulated within the organisation, for which DeSilva apologised to the Police Association.