London police were negligent in recruitment

TT

Published 15.14

The police in London are criticized for not having carried out sufficiently thorough background checks on new recruits. Archive photo. Photo: Alberto Pezzali/AP/TT

London's police force failed to carry out thorough background checks on new recruits.

Several of those hired with lower requirements in the process have later been convicted of several different crimes.

The British government is setting up an inquiry to review the background checks after an internal review pointed to the problem. Several cases of misconduct and other offenses have been committed. In addition, two police officers have been convicted of repeated rape crimes.

The London police – formally the Metropolitan Police – is Britain's largest police agency. It explains the problem that background check requirements have had to be lowered in order to meet the requirements for an increased number of new recruits during the years 2019–2023.

Previously, the Metropolitan Police has been accused of widespread homophobia, racism and sexism within the force in a high-profile investigation in 2023.