THE new deputy police and crime commissioner for Greater Manchester was unveiled at Bolton Town Hall this morning.

Commissioner Tony Lloyd announced that Manchester City Council deputy leader Cllr Jim Battle would be taking up the new £55,000-per-year post.

Bolton town hall was chosen as the venue to make the announcement because it was Bolton’s turn to host the regular crime commissioner panel meeting.

Former Manchester Central Labour MP Tony Lloyd was elected to the top post last November and has the power to set policing budgets and hire and fire the chief constable.

Cllr Battle, a Labour councillor, will start his new role helping Mr Lloyd in the next few weeks, and will stand down from his role on the council.

The decision to appoint a deputy has come under fire from Bolton’s Conervative group, with leader David Greenhlagh branding the move “disgraceful”.

But Mr Lloyd hit back and said that appointing the right staff was the best way to serve Greater Manchester.

Cllr Battle said: “I’m really pleased to be given this opportunity to serve the people of Greater Manchester.

"This is a fantastic chance to work with the police and crime commissioner, police, local authorities, other partner agencies and – most importantly of all – local communities to reduce crime and make our communities safer.

“In these times of severe financial pressures, we need to come up with innovative ways of working together so that our communities don’t suffer as a result of reckless government cuts.

"I believe I’ve got the experience and track record to help make a real difference to the people of Greater Manchester.”

Cllr Battle has served the public for more than 30 years, working for a range of charities, local authorities and housing groups.

He is currently the deputy leader of Manchester City Council, a position he has held since 2004.

During his tenure at Manchester City Council, Cllr Battle was responsible for setting up the city’s approach to dealing with crime and disorder and has represented the city region on a national level.

He also worked on schemes to target guns and gangs, responding to the riots in 2011 and improving Manchester City Council’s approach to dealing with hate crime.

Cllr Battle was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, but has lived in Greater Manchester for most of his life.

He has family in Bolton, Leigh and Wigan, as well as Manchester.

Sixteen people applied for the role, and an independent panel selected five for interview.

The panel comprised Rochdale Council leader and chair of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities' police and crime steering group, Cllr Colin Lambert; independent police and crime panel member Maqsood Ahmad; and former Manchester Evening News editor Paul Horrocks.

The panel interviewed the five candidates before putting forward three for Mr Lloyd to interview and make the final decision.

Mr Lloyd said: “I’d like to pass on my warmest congratulations to Jim. Although I wasn’t involved in the selection process until its final stages, I’ve been assured that the quality of candidates was incredibly high.

“Jim has a long and distinguished track record in bringing people across Greater Manchester together to make our communities safer.

"I’m looking forward to working with him on your behalf to drive forward this agenda in the coming years.

“I felt it was important to ensure that this process was as transparent as possible, which is why I wanted a strong, independent interview panel.

“There have been concerns raised elsewhere in the country about the fairness of deputy appointments and I hope this process gives reassurance that we have the best candidate for the job.”

As part of the application process, candidates were asked to answer a series of questions about their suitability for the role.

Cllr Battle's full CV and job application can be seen below or downloaded here:

CV: Jim Battle CV.PDF

Application form: Jim Battle Application Part 2.pdf