Penning condemns Government plans to ask recruits about their sexual habits in their applications to join the service.

Anyone now applying to join the force in England and Wales will be asked to “identify their sexuality”. On their application form they will be asked to identify their sexuality as ‘other than heterosexual’. In an interview with The Daily Star newspaper Mike Penning, MP for Hemel Hempstead constituency, told their political editor, Macer Hall “A police officer’s sexuality has got nothing to do with fighting crime. Instead of wasting time and money on this nonsense, the Home Office should be putting more bobbies on the beat.”

Penning has already called for more police on the streets of Hemel Hempstead and surrounding villages to combat the increasing violence offences. In his maiden speech he said “Violent crime in Hemel Hempstead has risen by nearly 150 per cent. In the last two years. In 2002–03, there were 739 violent assaults. On the figures available for 2004–05, 1,824 lives were damaged by violent crime. I do not blame our police force in Hemel Hempstead, which is stretched to the limit. There are no extra police in Hertfordshire this year. We do not have a single extra policeman on our streets. For every one coming in, another is leaving to join the Met. Other hon. Members have raised the matter in debates in the past few days. We must remedy the situation whereby Hertfordshire taxpayers are paying for the training of the Metropolitan police force. That was a major issue on the doorstep.”