When the shortlist to find Dame Cressida Dick’s replacement as Scotland Yard chief is whittled down tomorrow, the candidates will all have a familiar look. Critics claim Mayor Sadiq Khan’s brutal ousting of the Metropolitan Police’s first female Commissioner in its 193-year history has backfired. For it is certain a white, middle-aged man will lead Britain’s biggest force to usher in urgent reform amid allegations of a toxic culture of sexism, racism and homophobia in its ranks.
After much jostling, five highly-experienced contenders have emerged, raising questions over whether Dame Cressida’s “male and pale” successor can be an ally for all Londoners. Sir Mark Rowley, 57, a former Met deputy chief and head of UK anti-terror policing, is the frontrunner, followed by assistant commissioner Nick Ephgrave, 56, who led the team that finally solved 10-year-old Damilola Taylor’s killing, six years after he was stabbed to death in Peckham. Also entering the fray are Devon and Cornwall’s retiring chief Shaun Sawyer, 59, ex-Bedfordshire boss Jon Boutcher, 56, and New Zealand’s former top policeman Mike Bush, 61, who would become the first foreign commissioner.
