The head of the Metropolitan Police Federation has been sacked by his union for suggesting in a TV interview officers were worried about being labelled racist while patrolling areas of London.
Rick Prior, who represents 30,000 rank-and-file officers across the capital, had been suspended as chairman in October for the comments said to be “discriminatory in nature”.
On Thursday, Mr Prior was removed as chairman and barred from standing for life.
He was axed from his elected post for saying his members were increasingly nervous about challenging people from some ethnic minorities because there’s an “assumption of racism right from the off”. It followed several high-profile court cases.
Mr Prior said he had been dismissed because he “dared to speak the truth” and “would have been treated more fairly in North Korea”.
He added: “It was of no surprise that this kangaroo panel found against me; however, even I was taken back by quite how vindictive they were – permanently removing me from office and imposing a lifetime ban on me ever standing for election as a Federation rep again.”
In a statement, the Police Federation of England and Wales said: “We can confirm that Rick Prior, chair of the Metropolitan Police Federation, has been found in breach of the Federation’s Standards.
“As a result, Rick has been removed from his position as Chair and as a Federation representative and also prevented from standing for election to any Federation position. Both sanctions are imposed on a permanent basis.
“In line with our standard policy on governance matters, the Federation will not be commenting on the details of the case.”
Mr Prior won backing from ex-Home Secretary Suella Braverman who said his assessment was “correct”.
She claimed: “We have thousands of brave and inspiring men and women who sign up to serve, but many of them no longer feel empowered to act.
“They see their colleagues suspended or dragged through the courts simply for doing their jobs.”
In an interview with GB News, Mr Prior had said: “There’s a striking crisis of confidence at the moment within policing in general, and certainly within the Metropolitan Police, whereby officers are withdrawing from any kind of proactive policing for fear of falling foul of the IOPC [Independent Office for Police Conduct] or a vexatious or malicious complaint.”
He cited unease among officers over using force after incidents including PC Perry Lathwood being convicted of assault after challenging Jocelyn Agyemang who refused to show her valid bus ticket in Croydon, south London. The conviction was quashed on appeal.
Mr Prior continued: “There seems to be an assumption of racism right from the off, particularly when it’s a white officer and a member of the public from a minority ethnic community. And it almost seems as if the onus is then on the police officer to prove that the interaction wasn’t racist.”
The day after the broadcast, he was relieved of duties by the federation.
Mr Prior immediately referred himself to the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards, which concluded his comments did not amount to misconduct.
With the backing of the Free Speech Union campaign group, he fundraised to take legal action against the federation and is seeking a judicial review of the legality of his suspension.
