The Met & The Mayor

Lucy Kenningham | Issue 5 | Magazine, Politics

From the Archive

The political and cultural crisis surrounding London's police force has shone a light on an intolerable governance system

A bizarre hiring procedure came to light during the recent ugly spat between the Metropolitan Police and London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan. It was the fact that Cressida Dick, who recently resigned as Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (better known as London’s Met Police), had not one boss but two. The Home Office and the Mayoral Office are dually responsible for the Met, meaning that Dick answered both to Home Secretary Priti Patel and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

The problems associated with having multiple bosses hardly need spelling out. Google “two bosses” and the top articles on the subject have titles like “the miserable two bosses problem” and “how to handle multiple bosses & not lose your sanity”.

So why does the UK’s most important police force, which covers national crime (details below) and the security of the Royal Family, have such an objectionable structure? Let’s start at the beginning.

The night watchmen go gently…

No official police force existed until the 19th century; instead night watchmen and parish constables patrolled the streets. London’s population was around 1.5 million, its streets patrolled by a mere 450 constables and 4500 watchmen.

In the 1820s, mounting crime levels and increasing political and industrial disorder pushed some to call for reform. In response Sir Robert Peel, then Home Secretary and later prime minister, established the …

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