The Daniels report won't solve anti-Black racism at the Met but it offers a new way to tackle it | Keith Magee

"When I first read Shereen Daniels' report 30 Patterns of Harm, a damning review of anti-Black racism within the Metropolitan police, I didn't feel outrage I felt recognition. The report lays bare what Black Londoners have long known: racism in policing isn't a case of occasional failures. It is structural and, left unexamined, it reproduces. I also felt something else: the faint possibility of change. For perhaps the first time, the Met has chosen to see itself clearly."

"Those earlier reviews drew on public testimony and external critique, while Daniels' analysis uses the Met's own internal correspondence, policies and governance papers to expose how racial harm is reproduced through decision-making, culture and leadership. And crucially, the commissioner allowed it to be released without dilution or internal sign-off a level of transparency that neither previous inquiry achieved. That act of honesty is the beginning of transformation."

An internal review identifies pervasive anti-Black racism across the Metropolitan Police using internal correspondence, policies and governance papers rather than public testimony. The review enumerates patterns by which racial harm is reproduced through decision-making, culture and leadership. Earlier landmark inquiries (1999 Macpherson, 2023 Casey) similarly exposed structural racism and cultural dysfunction within the force. The police commissioner authorized full, undiluted publication of the review and a companion guide, signaling a level of transparency not achieved previously. Members of the Black Community Policing Advisory Panel report deep weariness among Black Londoners after repeated apologies and unfulfilled promises. The review's admission of ongoing work creates a basis for sustained cultural transformation.

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