CONSERVATIVE John Campion has been chosen as Worcestershire’s Police and Crime Commissioner.

The new West Mercia PCC replaces Bill Longmore, who retired last month from the £78,000-a-year job.

Mr Campion won with 83,619 votes in a second round of counting against closest rival Labour's Daniel Walton, on 55,162, to be elected to the role.

Mr Campion, also a Wyre Forest District councillor and a county councillor, promised to be 'the people's commissioner' and listen to them during his four year term.

He said: "I am exceptionally proud to have received the support of the community of West Mercia.

"I will be working with the communities of West Mercia over the next few months to make sure that the police and crime commissioner represents their hopes, dreams, values and aspirations."

Mr Campion, aged 39, of Bewdley, said he would be a 'listening commissioner' rather than one who imposed his views on others and promised to be the 'people's Police and Crime Commissioner'.

He intends to talk with the leadership about relinquishing his cabinet responsibilities for both Wyre Forest where he is cabinet member for planning and economic regeneration and the county council where he is cabinet member with responsibility for children and families.

However, he said he had no plans to stand down as a councillor at either district or county level, arguing that there were council elections next year and the public would not be best served by having costly by-elections.

The PCC is responsible for hiring and firing a chief constable, drawing up a crime strategy and setting the policing budget of more than £200 million a year.

The second count took place after Mr Campion won 64,514 votes in the first round and Mr Walton got 40,870.

Mr Campion received 19,105 second preferences and Mr Walton 14,292 second preferences.

In total 198,947 ballots were cast from an electorate of 935,188 (a turnout of 21.27 per cent).

Under the election rules if there is no outright winner in the first round then voters' second preferences are taken into account.

Mr Campion secured 64, 514 votes in the first preference, ahead of Labour’s Daniel Walton (40,870), UKIP’s Peter Jewell, Independent Barrie Sheldon (27,986), John Raine of the Green Party (14,323) and Margaret Rowley of the Liberal Democrats (12,914).

41 new PCCs were being elected across the country.

The key policies of his campaign were building a secure West Mercia and investing in crime prevention, reforming of back office roles to free up cash for frontline policing and to tackle anti-social behaviour which he said blights town and city centres.

He will be appointing a deputy but he said it would be 'an open, competitive and transparent process' with details announced towards the end of next week.