Ex-home secretaries demand more powers to sack police

Six former home secretaries have written to Suella Braverman, urging her to hand more powers to the police chief to sack officers guilty of misconduct. Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has been demanding greater dismissal powers following public outrage over the case of Sarah Everard killer Wayne Couzens and serial rapist David Carrick, both serving officers while they committed their crimes. Ms Bravermans Tory and Labour predecessors at the Home Office told her to be behind Labour MP Harriet Harmans police reform bill to give chief constables a greater say in misconduct cases. The letter was signed by former Tory home secretaries Michael Howard and Ken Baker, alongside ex-Labour ministers John Reid, David Blunkett, Jack Straw and Alan Johnson. The public deserve to have full confidence in the officers who have been tasked with upholding the law and keeping them safe, the cross-party grandees wrote in a letter first shared with LBC, warning that changes were needed to restore trust. We believe this issue is too important for partisan arguments and that the response must sit above party politics, which is why we are asking for your support to work with colleagues to make parliamentary time so these measures can be urgently implemented. In January, the Home Office recommended a review into the system for removing officers unfit to serve after the atrocious crimes of Carrick. The prime minister has said that the government is ready to give chief constables final say on whether officers can be sacked rather than independent lawyers on misconduct panels. Under current law, police officers who fail to maintain their vetting status can remain in their jobs under the appeals process. It is believed the government is considering ways to give chief constables automatic dismissal powers. Rowley is determined to speed up the process of clearing out unsuitable officers following re-vetting and checking records against the Police National database. The Met's Commissioner earlier this year admitted that the rules around getting rid of unfit staff were crazy after it emerged that sex offender cases were among the 161 serving officers with criminal convictions. Sir Mark, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was nonsensical he does not have the power to dismiss officers. He added that given the power to do so, I will be able to do it. The Metropolitan Police has admitted 161 officers with criminal convictions, including three serving officers with convictions for sexual offences and another 49 for crimes of dishonesty or violence. Of the 1,131 individuals whose misconduct cases were reviewed, Sir Mark said: 689 will have their case reassessed and 196 may have their vetting status reviewed. Donna Jones, chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said it was not unusual for an average police force to have up to 20 officers waiting for misconduct proceedings. It is right and proper that they are dismissed as quickly as possible, she said. It's a better use of taxpayers' money and once they are sacked, the chief constable is free to go and recruit somebody else to replace them. Under a reformed disciplinary procedure, more than 2,000 officers could lose their jobs.