[1] As Assistant Chief Constable in Greater Manchester, Hughes commanded the planning and delivery of the 2002 Commonwealth Games policing operation.
His responsibilities included the oversight of all ACPO's firearms issues, public order, roads policing, specialist operations and emergency planning.
He retired having worked on part of the police planning for the 2012 Olympic Games and also oversaw changes to the service following Stockwell and the 2009 G-20 London summit protests.
[citation needed] In 2005 he led the ACPO team co-ordinating the England and Wales resources for the G8 Summit at Gleneagles, and played a role in the national response to the 7 July 2005 London bombings.
[4][5][6][7] In 2006 Hughes was fined £500 by Rotherham Magistrates Court for failing to identify the driver of a South Yorkshire Police vehicle, as a result of him mounting a prosecution against himself.
[11] In August 2014 Jay Report was published and outlined the widespread sexual abuse (and associated criminality) of young white girls in Rotherham by Britons of predominantly Pakistani origin.