New Met Chief promises to be ruthless with racist and misogynist officers in 'zero tolerance' pledge
27 September 2022, 08:10 | Updated: 27 September 2022, 11:03
New Met Commissioner Mark Rowley admitted the force hasn't been 'ruthless' enough stamping out racist and misogynistic officers as he promised a zero tolerance approach within the ranks.
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Speaking on LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast, Sir Mark said his top priority was restoring trust in the police and ensuring less crime and high standards.
"Sadly I'm going to have to spend some time rooting out those officers who have let us down, corrupting our integrity," he said.
"There's racists and misogynists and we haven't been ruthless enough about them."
When asked how he planned to make the changes, Mr Rowley added: "It's about putting more resources in - the right technology - it's about the decision making that has a zero tolerance of people who misbehave rather than being too forgiving of it
"I think we have been too forgiving of it in the past."
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Met Commissioner says the force should focus on crime not 'gestures'
He also said getting the simple things right, like attending burglaries, was on his to-do list as well as improving neighbourhood policing.
Disregarding concerns over officers spending too much time on "symbolic gestures" such as taking the knee, as suggested by Home Secretary Suella Braverman, Sir Mark said his priority was instead cutting crime.
"The issue for the police is about operating without fear of favour," he said.
"We shouldn't show allegiance to any political cause whether it has 99 per cent public support or 1 per cent public cause."
Met Police boss quizzed on standards for officers
The Met chief also slapped down the suggestion counter-terror police should be made a separate unit.
Sir Mark described the idea as "ill-informed nonsense, frankly."
He said: "It may look an unusual arrangement to someone outside who has no understanding of policing whatsoever. Sixty per cent of the terrorists that are being 'worked on' live in London.
"The majority of terrorist attacks take place in London. The London-centric nature of terrorism in this country means that separating it out from the Met would create a massive problem to try and co-ordinate a policing terror organisation and the Metropolitan police because they would have to work so closely together you’d say why did we ever separate it out."
"It would be a distraction from what I’ve got to worry about at the moment, which is improving policing for London."
Met Police Commissioner on Women's safety
When asked about the safety of women in the capital, Sir Mark said: "Many women feel safe in London a lot of the time but too often the don't and that’s absolutely clear."
Despite the dangers, he said he would be happy for his daughters and granddaughters to walk the streets of London at night.
He went on to say: "The thing the Met can bring to this is a very clear focus on men who predate on women and children.
"There are many in the city who are stalkers, rapists, involved in domestic violence, some registered sex offenders...
"And the thing we bring to solving this problem, alongside other agencies who offer more support to victims, is the ability to identify and target those dangerous individuals."
Sir Mark concluded: "I have a majority of great men and women who are honest and dedicated and often heroic and with them - and with a clear focus - we will bounce back."
