Outgoing Met chief defends botched sex abuse inquiry
Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe has robustly defended his record as Met Commissioner, insisting he does not regret his force’s handling of the disastrous investigation into VIP sex abuse claims.
In his final public speech before retiring later this month, Sir Bernard said his five and a half years as Commissioner had been spent in a “restless search for ways to stay ahead of criminals”.
He said under his leadership, Scotland Yard had adopted the values of “courage, compassion and integrity”, and championed the needs of the weak and vulnerable without fear or favour.
But his time as Britain’s most senior police officer has also been dogged by controversy, including widespread criticism over Operation Midland, the Met’s historic sex abuse investigation, which saw the reputations of many VIPs traduced by an alleged fantasist.
The Met is now facing possible multi-million-pound legal action from former Tory MP Harvey Proctor, the broadcaster Paul Gambaccini and the former head of the Army, Lord Bramall, who were all falsely accused of child abuse.
Despite this, Sir Bernard told an audience at the Royal United Services Institute that if he had his time again, the one thing he would have done differently would have been to roll out a new crime-fighting IT initiative sooner.
Sir Bernard said: “I believe that police have a particular responsibility to protect weak and vulnerable people who are less able to protect themselves
“Correspondingly, we have a duty to ensure that we investigate without fear or favour if allegations are made against those in powerful positions.”
He said this could lead to tension between the police and people such as politicians and the media, but added: “I think that’s a healthy sign of a democracy where no one’s above the law.” He also defended the Met’s £20 million Operation Elveden inquiry ,which saw more than 30 journalists charged in connection with alleged corruption. All of the journalists prosecuted were eventually cleared of wrongdoing. The 59-year-old will retire once his successor is confirmed.