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Dame Cressida Dick: Metropolitan Police commissioner to leave her post on 10 April

The outgoing head of Britain's largest force says it had been "a tremendous honour to serve the people of London and the UK", as London Mayor Sadiq Khan insists the next commissioner must have a plan to restore "trust and confidence".

Saturday 2 April 2022 12:18, UK

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Metropolitan Police commissioner Dame Cressida Dick will leave her post on 10 April, it has been confirmed.

In a statement on Twitter, the outgoing head of Britain's largest force said it had been "a tremendous honour to serve the people of London and the UK".

Dame Cressida quit in a surprise move in February - but agreed to stay on until arrangements to find a replacement were finalised.

Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House will temporarily stand in as Scotland Yard chief until a successor is appointed, which is expected to be in the summer.

The office of London mayor Sadiq Khan said he would work closely with Home Secretary Priti Patel to recruit a new commissioner "to address the deep cultural issues facing the Met Police Service".

A spokesperson for Mr Khan said: "The mayor thanks Dame Cressida Dick for her decades of public service.

"The mayor has been clear that candidates for the next commissioner must have a plan to restore the trust and confidence of Londoners."

The Met tweeted a picture of Dame Cressida and a comment from her confirming her departure date.

She said: "It has been a tremendous honour to serve the people of London and the UK.

"I will share more on the work of my brave officers and staff next week."

Controversies under Dame Cressida Dick's leadership

In 2005, she was the officer in charge of the flawed operation which led to the death of a young Brazilian man, Jean Charles de Menezes. He was mistaken as a suicide bomber and shot dead by armed police while on the London Underground.
The force came under fire in March 2021, following the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving police officer. Wayne Couzens, who was later sentenced to a whole life order, used his position as an officer to lure the marketing officer to her death. An investigation uncovered concerns had been raised about Couzens, nicknamed 'The Rapist' as far back as 2015. The Met were also criticised for their heavy-handed policing of a vigil in Miss Everard鈥檚 memory.
In June 2021, a long-awaited report into the axe murder of a private detective accused the force of 'institutional corruption'. An independent panel examining the unsolved killing of father-of-two Daniel Morgan in a pub car park found 'multiple very significant failings' during the initial Met Police investigation.
In December 2021, an inquest into the four victims of serial-killer Stephen Port found Met Police mistakes 'probably' contributed to the deaths, with officers missing repeated opportunities to catch Port in 2014.
In February 2022, the police watchdog condemned Scotland Yard officers for bad behaviours that included racism, misogyny, harassment and offensive social media messages. The investigation was initially launched following a complaint an officer had sex with a drunk person in a police station, but later uncovered so much more.
The force has also been accused of acting too late when investigating alleged lockdown breaking parties held at No 10 Downing Street and across Whitehall.

Dame Cressida will take unused annual leave after 10 April, with her last day of employment being Sunday 24 April.

Ms Patel confirmed at the start of the week that the circumstances of Dame Cressida's resignation will be reviewed by the outgoing chief inspector of constabulary Sir Tom Winsor.

Dame Cressida quit after Mr Khan said he was not satisfied with how she dealt with outrage over racist, misogynist and homophobic messages shared by a group of officers based at Charing Cross police station.

Her resignation, which came hours after she said in a media interview she had no intention of quitting, was greeted with dismay by many officers.

She had already faced mounting criticism over her response to high-profile inquiries critical of the force, as well as the controversial handling of a vigil held following the murder of Sarah Everard.

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