Patel launches probe into Sadiq Khan’s handling of Cressida Dick resignation from the Met
Sadiq Khan’s handling of Dame Cressida Dick’s resignation as the Metropolitan Police commissioner is set to be probed by Whitehall, home secretary Priti Patel has announced.
Patel today said in a written statement that the “circumstances in which the outgoing [Met] commissioner is leaving her role warrant a closer look at the legislation which governs the suspension and removal of the commissioner”, with the home secretary announcing that Dick will leave her role next month.
Deputy Met commissioner Sir Steve House will take over as commissioner in an interim capacity from April.
Sir Tom Winsor, a former chief of the Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services watchdog, will lead the review into Dick’s resignation and report back to the Home Office.
“I will shortly launch the process to recruit a new Commissioner and anticipate that it will conclude in the summer,” Patel said.
“In the immediate term following Dame Cressida’s departure, legislation enables the deputy commissioner, Sir Steve House, to exercise temporarily the powers and duties of the commissioner. “
Dick resigned in February, after the London mayor said he had lost faith in her in the wake of a series of scandals.
The latest came in the form of a report showing evidence of widespread racism, homophobia and misogyny amongst Met officers in a large central London police station.
Officers involved were found to have made a slew of racist and homophobic comments, while also joking about raping women.
Dick told senior members of the Met that Khan gave her an ultimatum – either sack the Charing Cross police officers involved or resign.
The mayor stringently denies ever giving Dick an ultimatum over her position.
A Whitehall source told The Telegraph: “No matter what you think of Cressida, Sadiq failed to act with an ounce of professionalism in her removal, so it’s right we look at what happened, if the proper process was followed – and how we can strengthen accountability of chief constables and police and crime commissioners in the future.”
A spokesperson for Khan said: “Public trust in the Met Police is at the lowest level on record, following a series of devastating scandals, including the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving police officer and the overt racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia and discrimination exposed at Charing Cross Police Station, and the appalling strip-search of a black schoolchild where the Child Safeguarding review found that race was a factor.”