The Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said too much flexibility has been allowed in the vetting of officers and staff in the past and is now looking at setting a higher standard.
In a letter to the Home Secretary and Mayor of London, Sir Mark Rowley has also outlined an update on the progress being made to clear the Met Police of hundreds of officers the Commissioner has said are “unfit to wear the uniform”.
“The guidance from the College of Policing around vetting gives quite a bit of flexibility. The opportunity for redemption does have to be there, but we’ve been too flexible,” the Met Commissioner said.
He added: “Anything involving domestic abuse or sexual offending, I think that should be an absolute bar. There might be other offences where we need to show a bit more flexibility.
“So if someone 15 years ago as a young person stole a Mars Bar from a corner shop, that probably shouldn’t be an absolute bar, but most criminal convictions and cautions I think should be a barrier to joining the police.”
The Met Commissioner stated that he will support a complete ban on almost anyone who has received a caution or conviction from serving in the police.
Such a high standard is what Sir Mark Rowley looks for in London before a national review is completed.
The Home Secretary commissioned one after the conviction of serving PC David Carrick for a catalogue of sexual offences, including 24 counts of rape, with several missed opportunities identified to re-vet him.
Almost 200 officers have now been placed under enhanced risk management measures after having previous complaints of sexual or domestic violence re-examined.
They now face having their vetting reviewed.
More than 600 other officers will also have previous complaints against them looked at in more detail to see if there were any missed lines of enquiry.
Sir Mark Rowley stated: “This all makes for uncomfortable reading.
“But we have made significant progress in just 6 months. I recognise the scale of the damage to public trust that has taken place and the significant work we still have to do in order to restore it.”
(Source: LBC)
