Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Boris Johnson has ‘full confidence’ in Cressida Dick as Met commissioner

‘People have got to have confidence in the police,’ says prime minister

Andrew Woodcock
Political Editor
Monday 15 March 2021 15:47 GMT
Comments
Boris Johnson has ‘full confidence’ in Cressida Dick as Met Police chief

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Boris Johnson has said he has “full confidence” in Cressida Dick as Metropolitan Police Commissioner, amid calls for her resignation over the heavy-handed policing of Saturday’s vigil to murdered Sarah Everard.

Investigations have been launched by the Metropolitan Police and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary into Saturday’s events, when women attending the vigil on Clapham Common in south London were seen being forced to the ground and handcuffed by police.

Dame Cressida will this evening attend a crisis meeting of the government’s Crime and Justice Taskforce to discuss the protection of women and girls with the PM, Home Secretary Priti Patel, justice secretary Robert Buckland and director of public prosecutions Max Hill.

Calls for her resignation were led by Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, while Women’s Equality Party co-founder Catherine Mayer said her position was “untenable”.

But Mr Johnson’s comments made clear she is under no immediate pressure from Downing Street to go.

Read more:

Sarah Everard disappearance: What we know so far

Patsy Stevenson says she just went to lay flowers before arrest at Sarah Everard vigil

What are the new powers to ‘manage’ protests in the police bill?

Asked during a visit to Coventry if he had full confidence in the Met’s chief officer, Mr Johnson replied: “Yes, I do. And what she’s asked is … that we look at what happened on Saturday night.

“The police do have a very, very difficult job. But there’s no question that the scenes that we saw were very distressing and so it is right that Tom Winsor, the inspector of constabulary, should do a full report into it.

“I think people have got to have confidence in the police and Tom’s going to look at that.”

Mr Johnson said he was “very concerned” at the images broadcast from Saturday’s vigil.

“I think that we've got to recognise that the tragedy, the horrific crime that we've seen in the case of Sarah Everard, has triggered, has unleashed, a wave of feeling from people - from women above all - who do worry about their safety at night,” he said.

Mr Johnson said that the government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, being discussed in parliament today included measures to toughen sentences for rapists and stop the early release of serious sexual and violent offenders and toughen the law on domestic violence.

But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the legislation did not include anything “meaningful” on protecting women and girls, while devoting considerable effort to protecting statues against damage of the kind seen when a memorial to slave trader Edward Colston was torn down in Bristol last year.

“We have got a 300-page Bill coming before Parliament, with 176 clauses of 20 schedules,” he told reporters.

“It says lots of things about statues and almost nothing about protecting women and girls, and particularly dealing with violence against women and girls.”

The Labour leader said what was needed was more support for those subjected to domestic violence, abuse and sexual offending, adding the Bill “doesn’t address the fact that sentencing for rape and stalking is too low”.

“This is a gaping hole in the legislation, Government has got its priorities wrong, it should re-think,” he added.

Asked why the beleaguered Met chief retained the PM’s confidence, Mr Johnson’s spokesman told a Westminster media briefing: “I have spoken already about the difficult job that the police have had during the pandemic and we thank them for that.

“The Met and inspectorate are rightly looking into the events of Saturday now but the Commissioner continues to have the prime minister’s full confidence.”

Asked what the prime minister made of the National Police Chiefs’ Council call for “clarity” on how forces should handle demonstrations during the Covid-19 pandemic, Mr Johnson’s spokesman said: “We’ve worked closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing to make sure the right guidance is in place and that police officers know what the rules are and how to enforce them.

“Police have engaged members of the public throughout, they’ve explained the rules, encouraged them to follow the rules and enforced them if needed.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in