Metropolitan Police: Casey Review

Mary Robinson Excerpts

Tuesday 21st March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Suella Braverman]

As Baroness Casey makes clear, the majority of Londoners support the appropriate use of stop and search. As Sir Mark has made clear, stop and search is a vital tool in keeping Londoners safe and saving lives; 350 to 400 knives are seized per month thanks to stop and search. That is why I emphatically support the appropriate use of stop and search as a way to keep everyone safe.

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

Baroness Casey’s report makes harrowing reading. We see a police force riddled with misogyny, racism and homophobia; and a place where complainants or whistleblowers, rather than being listened to, are turned on and mistreated, leading to a systemic fear of speaking up. During the UK’s first Whistleblowing Awareness Week, this report shines a light on the failure of organisations where there is a culture of fear and cover-up. Shockingly, the report makes the following clear:

“The culture of not speaking up has become so ingrained that even when senior officers actively seek candid views, there is a reluctance to speak up.”

Clearly, the Government, the Mayor and the Met leadership must act on all of the report’s recommendations. However, may I add another one of my own, by encouraging my right hon. and learned Friend to consider how whistleblowing reform and an office of the whistleblower could play a key part in eradicating toxic cultures across all organisations?

[Suella Braverman]

My hon. Friend is right to highlight the need for reform of misconduct procedures. There are measures to ensure that there is transparency and rigour in the system, including the Independent Office for Police Conduct. The Government have also introduced other measures, including routinely holding misconduct hearings in public and having independent legally qualified chairs to lead misconduct hearings. But there is a vital need to ensure that provision on dismissals and the process of rooting out inappropriate officers is improved, which is why I have launched a consultation to look at just that.