Police chief Mark Rowley to retire after 31-year career

BRITAIN’S top counter-terrorism police officer Mark Rowley will retire in March, the Metropolitan Police Service said on Tuesday, after a 31-year career in which he led efforts to curb a rise in militant attacks.

Mr Rowley was the public face of the police’s counter-terrorism operations as attacks in Britain soared to their highest ever level last year, and he spearheaded the response to deadly incidents such as the London Bridge attack and the Manchester concert bombing.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd thanked Mr Rowley for “his commitment to tackling the terrorist threat” during his time as national policing lead for counter-terrorism, a role he has held since 2014.

Mr Rowley joined the police in 1987. Before becoming Britain’s counter-terrorism chief, he had responsibilities for tackling organised crime and sexual violence, and changed the force’s approach to public order following riots in 2011.

He said that while his career had been rewarding, heading up Britain’s counter- terrorism efforts had been the “greatest privilege”.

“It was immensely sobering, but none the less the greatest honour for me, to lead the response to last year’s terrible events in Manchester and London, where I witnessed the extraordinary bravery and compassion of UK policing,” Mr Rowley said.