A NEW chief constable of West Mercia Police has been appointed today – promising to build a “strong, confident and compassionate” crime-fighting force.

Anthony Bangham has landed the £143,000 role after winning the unanimous support of the police and crime panel at Worcestershire County Council this afternoon.

During an hour-long grilling he:

– Told councillors he would not “beat around the bush” in challenging police and crime commissioner John Campion if needed, saying he intended to be very direct

– Called cyber crime “one of the biggest challenges” police face, saying he intends to work with other forces on the crackdown

– Revealed a 25-year-long policing CV including specialised work in London which led to the introduction of Tasers across Britain

– Said the money-saving alliance with Warwickshire Police, which has led to widespread job losses, would not be abandoned

The panel, which contains councillors from across the West Mercia Police force area, were tasked with either accepting the recommended appointment or vetoing it.

They fired questions at him including his thoughts on the force’s future, the current alliance, what experience he had, what his views were on future crime threats and his approach to the commissioner Mr Campion.

“From the moment I first joined the police I’ve had a determination and a commitment to service the public,” he said.

“Secondly, as a leader I believe it’s necessary to be authentic and have clear ethical standards, and thirdly I recognise I don’t have all the answers.

“I can’t police alone and need to work with you all to deliver the services the people of West Mercia want."

He added: "My vision is quite simple - I want to build a strong, confident and compassionate West Mercia.”

Before being appointed in the top job today he was deputy chief constable in West Mercia, and prior to that spent four years as assistant chief constable at Avon and Somerset Police.

He lives in Hereford, and started off his career at West Mercia Police 25 years ago, working across the county in various roles including specialising in firearms and road policing.

His vast policing work includes stints in Redditch, Droitwich, Bromsgrove and Worcester, where he served as a sergeant and chief inspector.

He was superintendent in Hereford in 2003 and in 2005, was seconded to London to work on a big national project looking at firearms which led to the introduction of Tasers in the UK.

Before returning to West Mercia Police in 2014 as deputy chief constable, his four years in Avon and Somerset included being ‘gold commander’ at Glastonbury Festival, still the biggest festival in the world, and covering the biggest ever march from the right wing EDL group in Bristol.

He was also gold commander for the infamous November 2011 M5 fireball incident where seven people were killed and 51 injured after a thick fog sparked one of Britain’s deadliest motorway pile-ups.

During the meeting Councillor Tony Miller, the police and crime panel vice-chair, called him “the best candidate for the job”.

The Conservative was involved in the recruitment process, which included hour-long sessions where Mr Bangham took questions from a group of young people, and residents who live in different parts of the force.

Councillor Miller, who described the recruitment process as “gruelling”, said: “It wasn’t an easy process by any means, the process was very in-depth and it was very clear to me, this candidate we have in front of us was the best person for the job.

“The answers we got were more immediate, and they were better presented.”

Mr Campion, who made the final recommendation to the panel, said: “Anthony believes we can do better, we can transform a good service into a great service, and that we can get more value from that taxpayers’ pound.

“And that process must begin in earnest.”

It was backed, despite concern from one or two councillors about not enough details being provided in advance of the meeting.

At one point Councillor Lynn Denham said she had to "resort to Google" to find out more details about his CV, but she also backed the appointment.

The salary is £143,334, which is set by central Government as a suggested salary for a force the size of West Mercia.