Government proposals to recruit foreigners to head the UK's police forces have been severely criticised.
A consultation document seen by the BBC suggests senior foreign officers should be considered for new chief constable posts.
But Michael O'Byrne, former chief constable of Bedfordshire Police, said the idea was "very silly".
"Policing is based on community values and I think bringing people in who don't understand the values and community really is a backward step," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"Most foreigners don't share the British police forces' approach to the community, they're traditionally armed and they traditionally take little account of community views on policing."
POLICE CHIEFS PROPOSALS
Shadow home secretary Oliver Letwin also criticised the proposals, saying they were an unwelcome move towards more centralised control of policing.
"There are some jobs at the core of our state and society which we want to know that the people doing them are absolutely governed by patriotism.
"It sounds like a national police force, the opposite of what we want, which is more democratic accountability with local people having much more say in how they are policed," he said.
Another proposal in the draft document, "getting the best leaders to take on the most demanding challenges", is that chief constables in difficult areas should get higher salaries.
Mr O'Byrne said this amounted to performance-related pay, and could undermine civil liberties as senior officers would be encouraged to arrest more people in marginal circumstances in order to earn more.
HAVE YOUR SAY
"
If foreign police chiefs can do what Sven Goran Ericsson has done for England then I see no problem
"
Ben, Oxford, UK
The Association of Chief Police Officers, which represents senior officers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said it needed time to consider the proposals.
Its president Chris Fox said: "We're agreed that leadership is crucial to good policing and want to ensure that good leaders can build relationships with their local communities and staff.
"There is much to answer in this report and we will need time to consider the contents of the document in full, consult with our members, and draw together a response before we can comment any further."
Widest pool
Commenting on reaction to the document, Home Office minister Bob Ainsworth stressed the plans had not arisen out of dissatisfaction with those currently leading the police service.
He said: "It's very important for new ideas to be aired and discussed.
"We need to be able to draw from the widest pool of talent, and if that means police officers of other nationalities, who are the most suitably qualified for the job, and show the greatest talent, then they should not be ruled out.
"There is no agenda to create a national police service."
Local police authorities, who were also sent the proposals, are concerned about any attempts to centralise control over the forces.
Ruth Henig, chairwoman of the Association of Police Authorities, said: "What matters most to me is the local accountability of policing through chief officers of the force to a local community.
"That's the bedrock of British policing and I think anything that is proposed must not undermine that important principle."
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