13 Jan 2012

Michael family’s Wales takeover bid

Following last week’s announcement by Alun Michael that’s he’s trying to become Labour’s candidate for police and crime commissioner (PCC) for the South Wales area (as I forecast here a few weeks ago), his son Tal tweeted me this morning to announce that he himself is now running for police commissioner in North Wales.

Tal Michael has been chief executive of the North Wales Police Authority since May 2010, and now plans to resign from that job to run for the Labour nomination to be elected PCC for the area.

Before becoming chief executive of the North Wales Police Authority, Tal Michael held a succession of chief officer jobs in local governemnt – with Barnet, Hackney and Doncaster councils.

If they’re both picked by Labour, it could be one of the most unusual father-and-son double acts in British electoral history, though one should stress that Wales does have two other police areas – Dyfed-Powys and Gwent.

And far be it from me to complain about Michaels taking over the world!