The Met will not be reviewing the decision to allow a high-ranking Scotland Yard officer to keep his job despite being found to be paying prostitutes, according to an answer provided to Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon.
In May this year, an investigation by the Evening Standard revealed that a high-flying Scotland Yard officer who has a key role in helping recruit women to the force was allowed to keep his job despite paying hundreds of pounds to use prostitutes.
Instead of going before a gross misconduct board where he could have been sacked, the middle-aged officer was instead given “words of advice”, the lowest form of censure. He kept his job in 2019 after agreeing to undergo treatment for sex addiction.
The Standard revealed that the officer now works on a project set up to help restore the Met’s reputation by encouraging under-represented groups, including women, to become police officers and Scotland Yard staff.
In response to the revelation by the Evening Standard, Caroline asked the Mayor whether he would be reviewing the case, highlighting the fact that junior officers are routinely sacked for similar activities.
In response to Caroline's question, the Mayor stated that it is not possible to re-open disciplinary procedures unless new information comes to light – despite the admission that if a case of an employee using sex workers were to happen today, it would be “dealt with robustly”.
Caroline Pidgeon said:
“It is unbelievable that an officer who has engaged in such serious misconduct is still in post, in a role with a responsibility to recruit more women into the Met.
“Processes need to be changed to allow the Met to revisit the decisions of previous disciplinary processes, in light of the recent scandals that have rocked the service.
“Women need to be able to be confident the Met is there for them and that it is a safe working environment for a career. Unresolved issues like this seriously undermine that confidence.”
Read more in the Evening Standard.