Police given leeway to sack rogue officers
Chief constables will take charge of all misconduct hearings in the wake of Met rapist scandal
Suella Braverman is preparing to make it easier for chief constables to sack corrupt or abusive officers as she said she was braced for more “shocking cases” to emerge in the wake of the David Carrick scandal. The Home Secretary announced an internal Home Office review would consider putting police chiefs in charge of all misconduct hearings, effectively sidelining the independent panels chaired by lawyers which were set up to hear cases in 2015.
SUELLA BRAVERMAN is preparing to make it easier for chief constables to sack corrupt or abusive officers.
The Home Secretary’s move comes as she is braced for more “shocking cases” to emerge in the coming weeks in the wake of the David Carrick scandal.
She announced that a Home Office review would consider putting police chiefs in charge of all misconduct hearings, effectively sidelining the much criticised independent panels set up in 2015 and chaired by lawyers. The review could also introduce automatic disciplinary action up to dismissal for officers convicted of crimes and fasttrack sackings of the worst-performing officers including those who fail to maintain their vetting status.
The Metropolitan Police and the Government have come under pressure to investigate and punish any officers who allowed Carrick to be shielded from the sack despite repeated warnings.
Harriet Harman, the former Labour deputy leader, led calls in the Commons for officers who took no action against him to be removed from the force.
Carrick was officially sacked by the Met after he was unmasked as one of the UK’S most prolific sex offenders during an 18-year career in the force. He should have undergone checks at the 10-year point of his career in 2011 but this did not take place until 2017.
Mrs Braverman said “bureaucracy and process” in the disciplinary system seemed to have “prevailed over ethics and common sense” after Carrick was allowed to continue as a firearms officer despite nine missed chances to identify his offending. Using a statement to MPS, she told the Met and other forces to “double down” on efforts to root out corrupt officers, even though it may lead to more scandals, following Carrick’s “monstrous campaign of abuse”.
Describing it as a “dark day for policing,” she said: “It is vital the Metropolitan Police and other forces double down on their efforts to root out corrupt officers; this may mean more shocking cases come to light in the short term.”
Carrick, 48, will be sentenced early next month after pleading guilty to 49 charges covering more than 80 offences committed between 2003 and 2020. But a six-year time gap in his offending has convinced detectives more victims have yet to be identified.
Hertfordshire Police, which led the investigation, said more people had come forward with information on Carrick since news of his offences broke.
The Home Office aims to complete the review of the police dismissals process within four months. One of the main proposals would allow chief constables to be in charge of misconduct panels, replacing the legally qualified chairmen.
Officers facing the sack would still have a right of appeal to a police tribunal but the review will also look at indemnifying, legally and financially, panel members whom critics claim have been wary to take tough action for fear of legal action by the officers, supported by the Police Federation.
Chief constables could also accelerate dismissals of officers who show “a serious inability or failure to perform the duties or their rank or role, including where they have failed to maintain their vetting status”. At present, they must go through a three-stage process.
Last month, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley told MPS he was unable to purge the force of its “toxic minority” of “corrupt” officers because of rules that force him to defer decisions about sackings to independent panels. Mrs Braverman told MPS she had “taken seriously” the commissioner’s concerns.