Staff who fail re-vetting can also be sacked under UK
government reforms of disciplinary system
Nadeem
Badshah
Thu 31 Aug
2023 00.01 BST
Police
officers found guilty of gross misconduct face automatic dismissal while all
staff who fail vetting can be sacked, under new government reforms of the
disciplinary system.
The
measures are an attempt to restore the public’s faith in policing in the wake
of numerous controversies including serving firearms officer Wayne Couzens
being convicted of the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard.
In
February, the Met police officer David Carrick was jailed for life after
pleading guilty to 85 serious offences including 48 rapes.
Suella
Braverman, the home secretary, will announce on Thursday that the law will be
changed to ensure all officers must be appropriately vetted during their
service and to enable officers who fail a re-vetting test while in post to be
sacked.
A finding
of gross misconduct will automatically result in a police officer’s dismissal,
unless exceptional circumstances apply.
Under the
new measures, chief constables or other senior officers will also chair
independent public hearings responsible for removing corrupt officers from
their force.
Police
chiefs will also be given a right to challenge decisions and there will be a
presumption for former officers and special constables’ cases to be heard under
fast-track procedures.
Braverman
said: “Corrupt police officers and those who behave poorly or fail vetting must
be kicked out of our forces. For too long our police chiefs have not had the
powers they need to root out those who have no place wearing the uniform.
“Now they
can take swift and robust action to sack officers who should not be serving our
communities.
“The public
must have confidence that their officers are the best of the best, like the
vast majority of brave men and women wearing the badge, and that’s why those
who disgrace the uniform must have no place to hide.”
Chris
Philp, the policing minister, said: “Public trust must be restored – this is an
important step to ensure we are ridding forces of rogue officers, for the sake
of communities and for those officers who are dedicated, hardworking and
brave.”
Other
measures announced include the Home Office working with the sector to create a
list of criminal offences that would automatically amount to gross misconduct
upon conviction, streamlining the performance system to remove officers who
demonstrate an inability or failure to perform their duties, and issuing new
guidance to all forces to support the effective discharge of under-performing
probationary officers.
Gavin
Stephens, chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, told the PA news
agency: “Where criminal conduct is found, and of course in those cases, it’s
the most serious criminal conduct that we can imagine, then dismissal is
automatic.
“And such
processes are putting us back in control and speeding things up, which is a
really important part of maintaining public confidence.”
Lawyers,
known as legally qualified chairs, were brought in to oversee police
disciplinary panels in 2016 in a bid to make the system more transparent.
Stephens
added: “It’s right, in an employment process, just as in any other profession,
that we have the say over who works in policing or not.
“The good
thing about these changes is that chief constables or a chief officer is now on
the chair of the panel, so we will be able to put in a very strong operational
perspective on maintaining those high standards, in declaring what we expect
them to be in order to maintain public confidence.”
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário