Sadiq Khan denies giving an ultimatum for Police Commissioner Cressida to fire police officers
London mayor Sadiq Khan has accused the Metropolitan Police of “Amplifying” misleading information after a police Twitter account made a now-deleted post on Thursday about the alleged circumstances surrounding the shock resignation of police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick.
The blue-ticked official Met Police Taskforce account retweeted a post by LBC journalist Matthew Thompson, who suggested Dick had resigned after Khan told her to fire disgraced Charing Cross officers, which she “couldn’t” do and so quit instead.
“If the Mayor of London doesn’t understand that the process for sacking officers is independent of chief constables… well, that’s a bit of a problem,” Thompson wrote. The Met Police Taskforce responded, adding, “This is exactly what you should do.”
Khan claimed that the Met police spread disinformation when Khan was interviewed about it shortly thereafter on LBC Radio.
“How is it possible that Met Police officers who are concerned about the behavior of others can come forward when you have Met Police accounts? Why are we surprised that when whistleblowers don’t come forward if this is the attitude both IOPC talked about and from a blue ticked account?” he said.
An Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) report had previously revealed “It is disgraceful” behavior among Met officers at the Charing Cross station and a culture of racism, sexism, and homophobia.
Khan denied also threatening to fire Dick if she doesn’t fire the officers as The Times reported.
“This isn’t true. The commissioner was not given the ultimatum of sacking them or being fired.,” he said.
The Met police issued an apology over its tweet on Thursday, calling it “unacceptable” and admitting that it “shouldn’t have been shared from a Metropolitan Police account.”
“Officers in senior positions are currently addressing this matter. They will remind officers they must be impartial and independent at all times on duty and off, as well as on social media.” the Met Police spokesperson said in a statement.
Cressida Dick announced her resignation in an emotionally charged and strongly-worded announcement on January 25. She said that Khan had left her “It was impossible not to stand down as Metropolitan Police Service Commissioner.”
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