The leader of the UK's National Black Police Association (NBPA) has claimed there is an attempt by senior chief constables to remove him from his role. Chief Inspector Andy George told the Guardian that some long-serving chief constables view him as a ‘wee upstart’ who does not know his place.
George, first elected president in July 2020 after the murder of George Floyd, said he has faced toxic abuse on social media and multiple misconduct investigations. He believes he is being victimised in an effort to silence the views of the 6,000 members he represents. The 46-year-old officer, who served in an armed response unit in Northern Ireland, cited his sister Vikki's suicide at 23, which he attributes partly to racism, as motivating his work with the NBPA.
George noted a shift in the political environment from 2022, when then-home secretary Suella Braverman used language such as ‘tofu-eating wokerati’. He said that under new Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, officers were prohibited from taking the knee, and his request for a meeting was declined. The Met said it holds meetings with the Metropolitan Black Police Association branch and has appointed an expert adviser.
Since 2023, George has faced five misconduct investigations by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) following his media comments or posts on X. Of these, two found no case to answer, two resulted in ‘managed action’, and a fifth investigation launched in December relates to posts criticising the Met commissioner over the Charing Cross police station racism scandal. The charge is that his comments could damage public confidence in policing, but George argues he is holding truth to power.
