Cressida Dick’s resignation ‘badly handled’ by Mayor of London, says South London MP

By Kiro Evans, Local Democracy Reporter

Sadiq Khan could have difficulty finding a new Met Police boss after Cressida Dick was “hung out to dry”, a South London MP has said.

Bromley and Chislehurst MP Sir Bob Neill said the handling of Dame Cressida’s exit could turn off new recruits as the hunt to find a new Met commissioner begins.

Dame Cressida announced last week she was standing down after almost five years in the role.

Her tenure was marked by various controversies and she said she was resigning as Mayor of London Sadiq Khan no longer appeared to have confidence in her leadership.

Mr Neill said the mayor’s “ambush” on the police chief could now create difficulty for him.

He told the BBC’s Politics London show on Sunday: “I’m concerned we’ll have difficulty in recruiting to succeed her.

“If you think you are going to be ambushed by the mayor, and hung out to dry, how many really top police officers are going to take that risk?

“There were problems, it may have been the right thing to [have] ended up with, but it’s been badly handled by the mayor, and he can’t simply wash his hands of all of the responsibilities.”

Mr Neill, who is the chair of the House of Commons’ justice select committee, also said Mr Khan could not “escape responsibility” for the alleged failings of the Met.

He added: “There’s no doubt there have been serious problems in the Met and I’ve been very critical of those in the past. Equally the vast majority of our police officers in London do a fantastic job for the vast majority of the time.

“Whilst there are failings that can be laid at the door of Cressida Dick, the commissioner has operational control of the Metropolitan police, but the policies and strategies are set by the mayor.

“So the mayor can’t escape responsibility himself for his share of what’s gone wrong. There’s a joint responsibility here and simply making the commissioner the sole scape goat isn’t the answer.”

London’s Ealing MP Rupa Huq defended the mayor and said the issues lay with trust in the police force. She said on Politics London: “Again we need clearer lines of communication as it’s an unusual position in London where we don’t have a police and crime commissioner so we’ve got this strange relationship between the home secretary and the mayor.

“But ultimately in this country we have policing by consent, and also all the polling shows that trust and confidence in the Met Police – even to handle the Downing Street investigation – seems to have gone amongst Londoners.”

The Mayor of London’s office has been contacted for comment.

Home Secretary Priti Patel is now tasked with appointing a new Met commissioner in consultation with the Mayor of London.