A shocking internal review has exposed systemic failures in the Metropolitan Police's vetting procedures, which allowed at least 131 rogue officers to join the force and later commit criminal and misconduct offences.
Deliberate Shortcuts and Devastating Consequences
The report, published on Thursday, found that senior officers deliberately chose not to meet national vetting guidelines. This was driven by pressure to rapidly recruit 4,557 new officers within a three-and-a-half year period, as part of a government uplift programme starting in July 2019. The focus on speed and numbers "unintentionally compromised integrity," the review concluded.
These deviations from standard practice meant that 5,073 officers and staff were not properly checked. Critical shortcuts included failing to check thousands of references and not conducting essential Special Branch and Ministry of Defence checks. In a small number of alarming cases, decisions by vetting officers to refuse clearance were inappropriately overturned by an internal Met panel.
The consequences were severe. The report identified 131 officers who, having bypassed proper checks, went on to commit offences including sex crimes, drug misuse, racism, violence, and affray. While all have now been formally sanctioned, 28 of these individuals remain employed by the Metropolitan Police.
The Case of Serial Rapist David Carrick
Among the most horrific cases is that of former PC David Carrick, a serial rapist who was wrongly cleared to continue working in 2017 despite multiple allegations against him. Carrick was among 3,338 officers who received only limited checks during vetting renewals.
This failure meant intelligence linking him to repeated domestic abuse incidents was missed. Carrick was subsequently able to rape at least four more women after his flawed vetting renewal in March 2017. He was finally jailed for life with a minimum term of 32 years in 2023, after admitting 71 sexual offences and 48 rapes against 12 women.
The report states these failures contributed directly to "police perpetrated harm" and have profoundly damaged public trust in Britain's largest police force.
National Investigation Ordered
In response to the damning findings, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has ordered an immediate investigation into the Met's vetting procedures. She has also tasked His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services with examining whether other police forces in England and Wales similarly deviated from national standards.
"Abandoning vetting checks on officers was a dereliction of the Met's duty to keep London safe," Ms Mahmood said. "Londoners rightly expect officers to undergo robust checks so that the brightest and best - not criminals - are policing our streets."
Met Assistant Commissioner Rachel Williams acknowledged the force's past shortcomings, stating the publication of the report was part of "ongoing work to demand the highest standards across the Met." The force estimates that under normal practices, vetting would have been refused for approximately 1,200 individuals out of around 27,300 applications processed during the reviewed period.
