By Jessica Frank-Keyes
The Metropolitan Police is “institutionally” racist, misogynistic and homophobic, while officers like killer Wayne Couzens and rapist David Carrick could still be in uniform, a damning review has found.
London’s police force has failed to protect the public from officers who abuse women while racist officers and staff and a “deep-seated homophobia” exist in its ranks, the landmark report found.
Commissioned in the wake of Sarah Everard’s rape and murder, the Baroness Louise Casey review is “rigorous, stark and unsparing”, its author said.
Asked if there could be more officers like Couzens and Carrick in the force, she said: “I cannot sufficiently assure you that that is not the case.”
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the review’s contents were “disturbing, upsetting [and] heartbreaking” and apologised to everyone let down by the force.
But while he accepted Casey’s “diagnosis” he said he would not use the term “institutional”.
Her finding of “institutional racism, sexism and homophobia” echoes the Macpherson Inquiry after Stephen Lawrence’s murder and the Met’s abject failures in their investigation.
In the scathing document, Casey called for a “complete overhaul” of the force and the “effective disbanding” of the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection command – where the predatory criminals Couzens and Carrick both served.
If the force does not reform, it could face being broken up in future, she warned.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said there had been “serious failures of culture and leadership” and warned “further unacceptable cases will come to light”. She said Sir Mark was “taking action to restore confidence in policing in London”.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the report revealed an “utterly toxic culture” and “abuses of power” that had “shattered the trust that Britain’s policing relies on”.
Mayor Sadiq Khan said the review was “damning” and that he accepted Casey’s findings of institutional discrimination.
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