WARWICKSHIRE'S Police Crime Commissioner Ron Ball has welcomed the Home Secretary’s announcement on a review of the police stop and search powers.

In a statement to the House of Commons, Theresa may said police stop and search powers in England and Wales are to be overhauled with a revised code of conduct.

In her statement, she cited a report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) that showed 27 per cent of stop-and-search records looked at, did not contain reasonable grounds to search people.

At present, police can stop someone if they have reasonable grounds to suspect they are carrying illegal drugs, a weapon, stolen property or something which could be used to commit a crime.

Mr Ball said:“I understand the national concern on indiscriminate use of stop and search police powers.

“The position here in Warwickshire, looking at the stop and search figures for last year, shows that 4,393 of the white population were stopped and searched compared to 680 of our black and minority ethnic community and this year’s figures, going through audit, are looking similar.

"Warwickshire is one of 19 forces out of 43 the report highlighted is meeting its scrutiny requirements to empower local communities to hold the police to account for stop and search.

“When used properly stop and search powers are an important tool in the fight against crime. It is critical that the police use their powers to stop and search professionally.

“I welcome this report and believe that the latest proposals will help ensure that the use of stop and search will be seen in our communities as a legitimate use of police powers.”