"An internal review by the force found it had lowered vetting checks into the backgrounds of prospective and existing police officers and staff between 2013 and 2023. The Home Office said the Met estimated that more than 5,000 officers and staff were recruited without the right checks. It has been unable to confirm if pre-employment checks were carried out on around 17,000 officers and staff."
"The Met found evidence that 131 officers committed criminal or misconduct offences, ranging from rape to drug offences, hate crimes and lower levels infractions such as being intoxicated on duty. Among those who joined or stayed in the force because of defective vetting was Cliff Mitchell, hired despite an unproven child rape allegation and later convicted of 10 counts of rape, including three of raping a child under the age of 13."
"Abandoning vetting checks on officers was a dereliction of the Met's duty to keep London safe, she said. Londoners rightly expect officers to undergo robust checks so that the brightest and best not criminals are policing our streets. The defective vetting allowed some to join the Met who should not have, while others who were revetted were allowed to stay in when they should have been removed."
An internal Metropolitan Police review found vetting checks were lowered between 2013 and 2023, leaving thousands of officers and staff without proper pre-employment checks. The Met estimated more than 5,000 people were recruited without the right checks and could not confirm vetting for around 17,000 personnel. The review identified 1,400 officers who should have been flagged but remained with police powers and found 131 officers committed criminal or misconduct offences, including rape, drug offences, hate crimes and intoxication on duty. High-profile cases included convictions of Cliff Mitchell and David Carrick. The Home Secretary commissioned an inspection of recruitment and vetting practices.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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