Scotland Yard is 'Rotten' Believes UK Home Secretary as She Plans to Overhaul Met Police, Media Says

Reports say tensions between the home secretary and the Metropolitan Police chief began after the latter reportedly ignored requests to look into the shocking murder of a young woman in South London, who was killed by a police officer.

UK Home Secretary Priti Patel believes the Metropolitan Police Service, commonly known as Scotland Yard is rotten from top to bottom as she plans to conduct an overhaul of the task force to bring it under greater political control, The Times has reported, citing a government source.

According to the outlet, Ms Patel's bewilderment over Scotland Yard's handling of the Sarah Everard case led to a clash with Metropolitan Police Chief Dame Cressida Dick. The home secretary was left incensed after Dame Cressida reportedly ignored inquiries Ms Patel made on behalf of Sarah Everard's family, the source told The Times.

Scotland Yard's "defensiveness" and unwillingness to confront mistakes made the Met Police the worst Priti Patel believes.

"Priti told Cressida to cut the crap. She said this case is important and is of national significance. We have lost count of the number of conversations she had with Cressida and Steve House [the deputy commissioner]. They are not interested. It is institutional. They are very defensive. Policing is very defensive, but the Met are absolutely the worst", the source told the newspaper.

The Case of Sarah Everard and the Debate on the Role of Police

This spring, Britain was rocked by the disappearance of a young man, who vanished in South London as she walked home from a friend's house on 3 March. A subsequent investigation revealed that Sarah Everard was kidnapped by a Metropolitan police officer, Wayne Couzens, who falsely arrested her under the pretence of violating coronavirus guidelines.

The 48-year-old, who served in the Met's Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Unit raped his victim, strangled her, and then burned the body before disposing of the remains in a pond.

The news caused a huge public outcry and reignited the debate on the role of law enforcement in society and police violence.

People gather at a memorial site in Clapham Common Bandstand, following the kidnap and murder of Sarah Everard, in London, Britain March 13, 2021. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

© REUTERS / HANNAH MCKAY

Public indignation has since grown after it became known that the Metropolitan Police failed to conduct a thorough vetting of Wayne Couzens. He was previously accused of indecent exposure and allegedly nicknamed the "rapist" among colleagues. Reports say he also had problems with drugs and possessed extreme pornography. Couzens received a whole-life prison term, with the judge describing the case as "devastating, tragic, and wholly brutal".

Scotland Yard and Dame Cressida Dick came under even more harsh criticism when a public vigil for Sarah Everard was broken up by law enforcement, with officers forcefully removing female demonstrators.

Police detain a woman as people gather at a memorial site in Clapham Common Bandstand, following the kidnap and murder of Sarah Everard, in London

© REUTERS / Hannah Mckay

Following the murder, Home Secretary Patel announced two probes into the Metropolitan Police – one dealing with the task force's vetting of Wayne Couzens, while the other inquiry will look at the "professional standards and discipline and workplace behaviour".

The Observer revealed that hundreds of complaints of sex abuse have been filed against officers in recent years and only a small portion of them were upheld.