The Metropolitan police are facing a crisis after losing a high court case over their enhanced vetting procedures for officers and staff. Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley called the situation “absurd” and urged the government to take immediate action to clean up the force. The ruling could result in more than a hundred officers and staff who failed the new vetting scheme, introduced after the murder of Sarah Everard, being reinstated or keeping their jobs.
The decision has sparked concerns over women’s safety, with the government considering new laws if the Met’s appeal is unsuccessful. The vetting scheme was intended to assess suitability for sensitive roles within the force, and those who lost their vetting faced potential dismissal through misconduct hearings.
The Met’s leadership is angry at the federation for bringing the case, particularly as it involved an officer facing allegations of rape. The federation has been criticized for supporting this officer and potentially putting female officers’ safety at risk.
The high court ruled that the Met had breached human rights laws and did not have the power to dismiss officers without vetting clearance. The court called for regulations to resolve the anomaly and provide a fair process for challenging decisions.
General Secretary of the Met Fed, Matt Cane, criticized the flaws in the scheme and questioned why the Met believed they could operate outside the law. The outcome of the case has left the Met in a “hopeless position” with affected officers remaining on special vetting leave, which Rowley described as a waste of money but the “least bad option.”
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