Tories retain Police and Crime Commissioner post in Thames Valley region - including MIlton Keynes, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire

Conservative Matthew Barber finished top of the pile of first preferences with 267,404 votes to the 175,123 garnered by Labour’s Laetisia Carter.

As the winner needed to have at least 50 per cent of first preferences to win, the Lib Dems and an Independent were eliminated from the contest and second preference votes were added into the mix.

After the second preferences were counted the final result was:

Barber: 313,148 votes

Carter: 233,446 votes.

Oxfordshire resident Mr Barber had been the deputy to PCC Anthony Stansfeld since January 2017 and had already prepared a draft policing plan to put to the public.

It was Chipping Norton councillor Carter’s second attempt at winning the position after losing in 2016. The only female candidate, she put tackling violence against women and girls at the top of her agenda.

Lib Dem John Howson, also from Oxfordshire, has now tried and failed three times to get elected to the role at Thames Valley since PCCs were created in 2012.

Thames Valley is the largest non-metropolitan police force in the country. It covers over 2,200 square miles including Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire and has a population of over 2.34 million people.

In Milton Keynes the first round result put the Conservatives on top with 30,764 votes, to Labour’s 24,219. The Lib Dems trailed in third with 8,836 and the Independent candidate, a former Thames Valley police sergeant scored a creditable 6,231.

Police and crime commissioners at the 43 police forces in the country propose plans of action, can hire and fire chief constables, and propose budgets.

Mr Barber has held the position of deputy police and crime commissioner since January 2017 and has already prepared a draft policing plan to consult on.

The complete result after the first round of voting was:

Barber (Cons): 267,405

Carter (Lab) 175,123

Howson (Lib Dem): 110,073

Robinson (Ind): 77,210

No candidate having achieved the 50 per cent of votes plus one needed to give them an unassailable lead, the voting went to a second round to count voters’ second preferences.

The result of the vote in 2016 after the contest went to a second round was Conservatives 202,396 and Labour 172,717.