Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has hit out at the Home Office for dragging its heels over a review that could make it easier for the force to fire rogue police officers.
Sir Mark said on Tuesday he is “frustrated” by the “perverse” system, which currently means some errant officers must remain employed by the force.
The Home Office launched a review of the police disciplinary process in January, after serving Met officer David Carrick was convicted of raping and abusing at least 12 women over an 18-year period.
But speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme on Tuesday, Sir Mark said: “We haven’t yet heard the results of that review and I’m frustrated.
“I’m getting on with things. I need those changes in regulations to help me get on with them because some of the processes are too long and too bureaucratic.
“Some of the decisions are made outside the Met, so people we’ve decided shouldn’t be police officers, an independent lawyer says ‘bad luck, you’ve got to keep them’. That can’t be right. No other employer has to deal with that.”
Sir Mark previously estimated that hundreds of officers in his force have been getting away with misconduct and even criminal behaviour, but said he currently has no way of removing them.
“I’m a man in a hurry,” he added. “We’re an organisation in a hurry to build the trust of Londoners, and I’d like that support as quickly as possible.
“It seems a little perverse, doesn’t it, that I actually don’t get to decide who works here? That’s a bit weird. And I don’t think anybody else works in an organisation where that’s the case.”
In March, Home Secretary Suella Braverman acknowledged it is currently “very difficult” for chief constables to kick out officers who “fall short”.
“I’ve announced changes that we are going to make, or consult on at least, on the dismissals process,” she said.
“We have found that it’s very difficult for a chief constable to dismiss an officer… who falls short. If the law needs changing, I will do that.”
The Home Office review, launched on January 18, aimed to “ensure that the police officer dismissal process is effective at removing those who are not fit to serve the public”.
The government said the review would “look at the effectiveness of the disciplinary system so the public can be confident it is fair but efficient at removing officers who fall far short of the high standards expected of them”.
It was launched following an interim report into the Met’s culture by Baroness Dame Louise Casey, which raised concerns about the low number of police officers being dismissed, and that those with multiple allegations of misconduct against them were still serving the public.
Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper has also criticised government’s apparent inaction, saying that ministers have “failed to introduce any new national standards or requirements or any serious changes to police vetting, conduct and misconduct processes” and that there has been “a total lack of leadership from the centre” to help Sir Mark deliver his promised reforms.
Speaking to the Today Programme on Tuesday, Sir Mark described his current bid to root out rogue officers from the Met as the “biggest doubling down on standards” the force has seen in 50 years.
“I’ve been really clear about bearing down on standards,” he said. “The majority of my officers want that. They’re reporting more cases, and we’re having a big effect.
“We’ve got more officers reporting allegations over the last six months than ever before.
“We’ve got more investigations. We’re removing more officers from the organisation.
“So that’s the doubling-down effect that we’re seeing. It’s going to take some time and I spoke publicly about this. You’re going to see a couple of cases a week appearing in court.”
The Home Office has been approached by the Standard for a comment.
