Police officers found guilty of misconduct face automatic dismissal

Telegraph

07-05-2025

Police officers found guilty of gross misconduct will face automatic dismissal under rules to root out rogue behaviour.
Officers will be sacked for gross misconduct unless there are 'exceptional circumstances', under the rules to be introduced from the end of May.
Ministers believe the tougher rules will strengthen the ability of police chiefs to remove officers unfit to serve by setting clear expectations about what should happen to those guilty of the most serious misbehaviour.
About 500 officers who were guilty of gross misconduct were dismissed or chose to leave the service, official figures from 2023/24 show.
But currently there is no guarantee that gross misconduct will lead to dismissal. Some 56 officers remained in policing last year despite being found guilty of serious misbehaviour.
Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, said: 'We place a huge amount of faith and trust in the police officers we see in our communities, and it is vital that only those fit to wear the uniform are serving the public.
'We cannot let the majority of officers, who are brave and committed to keeping us safe, be tarnished by the few who commit serious criminality or gross misconduct. They, and the public, deserve certainty that those who are unfit to serve will be dismissed.
'With our Plan for Change, we are sending the clear message that no matter where you are in the country, the officers serving on our streets are only of the highest standards.'
The legislation, laid in Parliament on Wednesday, will create a presumption of accelerated hearings for former officers, ensuring swifter proceedings for those who resign or retire before they face a misconduct hearing.
Former officers who would have been dismissed had they still been serving will continue to be barred from future service. Unsatisfactory performance procedures are also being streamlined so that underperforming officers are taken through the process more quickly.
Serious criminal offences where cases must be heard in the crown court will also automatically amount to gross misconduct under the new measures.
These 'indictable only' criminal offences like rape and grievous bodily harm often lead to misconduct proceedings, but it is not currently enshrined in law. It will now be written into statute, making it more straightforward for forces to deal with such cases quickly.
As part of the Government's reform agenda, further measures will be brought in later this year to strengthen national vetting standards and ensure every force follows them, as well as introduce stronger requirements to suspend officers under investigation for violence against women and girls.
Last month, Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, announced that police chiefs will be granted powers to sack hundreds of 'rogue' officers who fail background checks.
She is to change the law to allow chief constables to automatically sack officers who fail vetting checks, closing a loophole that prevented unsuitable or unsafe officers from being taken off force payrolls.
Currently, those officers are moved to backroom roles or placed on 'special vetting leave'. Scotland Yard alone estimated it would cost the force at least £2 million a year to continue to pay for officers who have failed the background checks.
Baroness Newlove, the Victims' Commissioner, said: 'Today's changes are a welcome and necessary step toward restoring public trust – and reaffirming the values policing must uphold. Too often and for far too long, red flags have been missed, minimised or ignored.
'While only one piece of the puzzle, I hope these measures will help to kick urgently needed cultural change into gear, ensuring only those worthy of the badge are allowed to serve.'