Met Police put into 'special measures'

The London Mayor says he welcomes the additional scrutiny as the Metropolitan police force is put into special measures.

Following a series of failures, the watchdog in charge of inspecting the force says it's now monitoring the service and will support it to make improvements.

A spokeswoman for the HMICFRS said:

"We can confirm that we are now monitoring the Metropolitan Police Service through our Engage process, which provides additional scrutiny and support to help it make improvements."

Sadiq Khan, said:

“The HMIC has raised very serious concerns about the Met’s performance and I welcome the additional scrutiny and support that these measures will now bring. Unlike many others, I have long been clear that wide-ranging reforms are urgently needed for the Met to regain the trust and confidence of Londoners – which is so vital to policing by consent.

“A series of appalling scandals have not only exposed deep cultural problems but have damaged the confidence of Londoners in the capital’s police service.

“The decision by the HMIC to now move the Met into special measures has laid bare the substantial performance failings by the force.

“As I have been saying for some time, Londoners deserve better. That’s why we now need to see nothing less than a new contract forged between the police and the public in London. This means root and branch reforms and systemic change to the Met’s performance and culture.

“This will be a crucial first step for the next Commissioner to start rebuilding trust and credibility with our communities. I will work with HMIC and will hold the Met to account in delivering the police reforms and step change in policing performance and culture that all our communities deserve.”

Home secretary Priti Patel also says she supports the measures, saying they're required to regain public trust both in London and across the country.

"The public put their trust in the police and rightly expect the country's largest force to protect them effectively and carry out their duties to the highest professional standards. As Home Secretary, I have overseen the largest funding boost for policing in a decade, and the Government has committed to an extra 20,000 police officers, with 2,599 already recruited by the Metropolitan Police.

"I expect the police to get the basics right. It is clear the Metropolitan Police Service is falling short of these expectations which is why I support the action that HMICFRS has taken today to highlight their failings - and I expect the Met and the London Mayor to take immediate action to begin addressing them.

"The process to recruit a new Commissioner is well under way and I have made clear that the successful candidate must demonstrate sustained improvements in the Metropolitan Police Service in order to regain public trust both in London and across the country.

"The new Commissioner will need to deliver on the public's priorities for the police - making our streets safer, bearing down on crime and bringing more criminals to justice, while continuing to recruit thousands of new officers to protect local communities."

According to the policing watchdog's website, a force enters the engage process if it is "not responding to a cause of concern, or if it is not succeeding in managing, mitigating or eradicating the cause of concern".

It adds: "In the Engage phase, forces will develop an improvement plan to address the specific cause(s) of concern that has caused them to be placed in the advanced phase of the monitoring process. The force may receive support from external organisations such as the College of Policing or the National Police Chiefs' Council, brokered by HMICFRS."

A Met statement: "We recognise the cumulative impact of events and problems that the Met is dealing with. We understand the impact this has had on communities and we share their disappointment.

"We are determined to be a police service Londoners can be proud of. We are talking to the Inspectorate about next steps."

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