The Home Secretary has announced that a periodic review of the effectiveness and efficiency of the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is to be brought forward following the publication of an independent panel’s report into the murder of Daniel Morgan.
Speaking to the House of Commons this afternoon (June 15), Priti Patel said: “There can be no confidence in the integrity of policing without confidence in the police watchdog. The IOPC has made good progress since it was formed in 2018, but questions remain about its ability to hold the police to account.
“In particular, profound concerns exist around the handling of the IOPC’s investigation into Operation Midland. The issues raised by Daniel Morgan’s independent panel further reinforce the need for a strong police watchdog.
“I am therefore announcing today that I am bringing forward the next periodic review of the IOPC to start this summer. This will include an assessment of the IOPC’s effectiveness and efficiency.”
She added: “It’s devastating that 34 years after he was murdered, nobody has been brought to justice. The report sets out findings from its review of the last three decades, it’s over 1,200 pages long and three volumes. It is right that we carefully review its findings.
“The report itself is deeply alarming and finds examples of corrupt behaviour – corrupt behaviour was not limited to the first investigation, that the Metropolitan Police made a litany of mistakes and that this irreparably damaged the chances of successful prosecution of Daniel Morgan’s murder.”
Ms Patel said she would also be seeking more information from Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) Commissioner, Dame Cressida Dick.
“We cannot ignore the findings of this report. Its recommendations are wide ranging and far reaching across aspects of policing, conduct, culture and transparency in public institutions,” she said.
“The police are operationally independent and the Metropolitan Police are held to account by the Mayor of London and the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime, but the police are accountable to Parliament through me.
“Today I have written to Dame Cressida to ask her to provide me with a detailed response into the panel’s recommendations for the Metropolitan Police and the wider issues outlined within the report.”
“I will also ask Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services to consider how best it can look into the issues raised.
“I intend to return to the House to update on progress made on this and other recommendations made in the report once I received responses from the Metropolitan Police and others.”
Ms Patel added: “This is one of the most devastating episodes in the history of the Metropolitan Police. The report accuses the Metropolitan Police of a form of institutional corruption. Police corruption is a betrayal of everything policing stands for in this country. It erodes public confidence in our entire criminal justice system. It undermines democracy and civilised society. We look to the police to protect us and so they are invested with great power.”
Ms Patel said the “overwhelming majority” of officers use this power honourably but criticised those who do “terrible harm” by misusing it or who “indulge cover-up or ignore corruption”.
Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said: “Publication of the report should never have taken this long, 34 years since Daniel Morgan’s horrific murder. Four major police investigations, a collapsed trial, an inquest, the independent panel was set up by (former prime minister Theresa May) in 2013 yet the family has had to wait a further eight years since.
“The findings in the report are damning and the go to the very heart of our policing, criminal justice system and media. The challenge to the Government today is what will now be done to ensure that something like this can never happen again.”
Content retrieved from: https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/review-of-effectiveness-and-efficiency-of-iopc-to-be-brought-forward/.
which is why the UK media need to get involved! The only way that The corruption within the Police Forces here in Britain AND The IOPC will ever be dealt with is if The public are aware, which they are not.
Only a tiny minority of ‘offenders’ know.
If The corruption, especially within The IOPC were to be exposed by National Papers and News Channels. there were be Nationwide shock and fury.
The IOPC are utterly corrupt. The majority of its staff are former Police Officers. I have clear CCTV footage of myself being thrown violently head first into a door frame, had my head banged full force into a wall,( sustaining a visible bump yet no Dr was called) detained bare foot in a cell with urine around the toilet base. AN Inspector, Superintendent and IOPC all denied my allegations – Their arrogance, considering my concrete evidence, is frightening. I can only assume that they have some way of escaping Justice.
The Media have to cover this. Without a public investigation, they will continue to cover and lie for themselves.
What’s the point it’ll will be hand picked cases why is it when the police refuse to look into perjury assaults by officers, the iopc are supposed to look into the complaints they don’t they send the complaint back to the police for them to look in to it but they have already refused then tell you there refusing a second time the iopc isn’t fit for purpose
The police conduct authority is not fit to standards. They ignore my eye witness contact details. They are now subject to my legal action against them.
In my case the IOPC showed pure and utter rasium towards me. They actually lied to cover up the fact that an officer a DC made comments about my disability. Lied of how long they were in my house which was 5 hours 30 minutes stated it was 3 hours. Two IOPC reports are different from each other. They fail to state or comment about an officer throwing my daughters ashes around my bedroom. They fail to acknowledge or investigate why a search warrant has a different address on it whitened out by tipex and my address printed in bold to cover the fact. They failed to investigate my sons assault. They fail to acknowledge a male officer viewing me naked in bed l am a stroke victim and could not talk properly when they came here l was not allowed privacy to dress l was left in a urine soaked dressing gown for 5 hours 30 minutes no apology has been given for anything the officers done the warrant it’s self is an illegal warrant not stamped by a court this is supposed to be a copy but the IOPC has failed to produce the original to a solicitor to view. The Iopc has just covered this whole matter up with more and more lies which has caused me another Tia and heart problems. I have zero confidence in East Sussex police now and l cannot trust or respect them or the IOPC because of the lies to cover up this matter which has left me with thousands of pounds out of pocket because of deliberate destruction of my property. I will never trust the police or IOPC again ever it is totally pointless to complain to them they are only there to cover up for police corruption and in my case that’s proven