New Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has begun setting out his plans to reform Britain’s largest police force
(Picture: PA Wire)Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has said he will be “ruthless in rooting out racist and misogynist officers” from the force.
Sir Mark took over as chief of Britain’s biggest police force earlier this month and on Tuesday insisted his mission was to restore public trust in the Met following a series of scandals which revealed poor discipline and in some cases criminality amongst his officers.
These include the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens and police sharing misogynistic and offensive messages on Whatsapp groups. Sir Mark told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “We need to be ruthless at rooting out those who are corrupting the integrity of the organisation — the racists and the misogynists.” He said that in the past some “bad behaviour” had been tolerated but that would end under his watch.
The policing inspectorate has placed the Met in special measures over “systematic” failings, and his predecessor Dame Cressida Dick resigned earlier this year after a clash with Mayor Sadiq Khan. Sir Mark said he wants to be able to show the public that progress has been made in key areas in 100 days, and to bring the force out of special measures in 12 to 18 months.
He also dismissed claims that firearms officers threatened to walk out in protest at the suspension of a colleague who fired the shot that killed unarmed black man Chris Kaba during a vehicle stop in Streatham. Sir Mark told LBC: “It’s misreported nonsense. I have a very, very dedicated group of firearms officers who go out day in and day out, confronting the most extraordinarily difficult situations to protect London and they wouldn’t let down London.”
Addressing the question of whether officers should be allowed to take the knee in a show of solidarity with black people, the commissioner said the force should remain neutral to avoid alienating people and added: “We should not show any allegiance to causes, however noble or not.”
On violence which flared at the Notting Hill Carnival with a killing on the last day, he said he would be working with organisers to make future events as safe as possible.
Sir Mark also said it was unacceptable that the proportion of reported burglaries attended by an officer has fallen to 50 per cent and renewed his pledge that victims would be visited by police.
He said: “We’re never going to turn up to every single crime, and the public understand that, but something as severe as burglary needs a proper policing response. It’s too serious an intrusion not to have somebody turn up.”
Asked about the number of youth murders in London, he said he wanted to get the annual number of all murders in London below 100 and tackle violence by men, admitting that some women do not feel safe on the streets of the city at night.
