New Met commissioner declines to say whether force is institutionally racist

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The new commissioner of the Metropolitan police declined to say whether his force was institutionally racist or not, saying he was not interested in “labels”, while vowing to root out racism in the force.

Sir Mark Rowley’s comments, as he carried out a round of media interviews were criticised by black officers and the surviving brother of Stephen Lawrence, whose murder by a racist gang was botched by the Met and which led to the Macpherson inquiry in 1999 finding the Met was institutionally racist.

Stuart Lawrence accused the new Met commissioner of a “cop out” and insisted the admission from the police chief vowing to reform Britain’s biggest force was essential.

After weeks of planning Rowley launched his mission to reform the Met, promising more trust, less crime and higher standards.

Race has been a longstanding problem for the Met, which polices London where more than 40% of people are from ethnic minorities.

In his third week as commissioner, Rowley said scandals such as officers caught exchanging hate messages over recent years showed racism had taken too great a hold in corners of the force, was “systemic” and had undermined the Met. He also believe the Met has been too “forgiving” of wrongdoing and promised zero tolerance.

Speaking to crime correspondents, Rowley said: “We have a real problem with race. I’ve been very clear in what I’ve said so far about racism and other issues like misogyny, that has undermined us. I have been very clear as well, it’s a systemic issue that we have been too weak in tackling it and it’s got too much of a hold in corners of the organisation. And that weakness is about systems, leadership, culture and a whole range of issues. So yes, we have a lot to do and I’m not hiding from that.”

Asked whether the Met was institutionally racist as defined by Macpherson, Rowley said: “We have a series of challenges to meet, as I’ve said, and I’m gonna be quite candid about that. I’m not interested in using labels that are being kicked around … by different people to bring different issues.

“I just need to be really practical about what the issues are and about what I’m going to do about it. As I’ve said, I’m going be ruthless about rooting it out, the racism and the other bad behaviours, and I’m going to confront the systemic issues that have allowed it to prosper in a way that it shouldn’t have done”.

Stuart Lawrence said: “Labels are important. It’s a bit haphazard to say ‘I don’t believe in labels’ … it’s a cop out.”

Insp Chris Excell, chair of the Met Black Police Association, said the leader of the Met – which, as London’s force, polices the area where most of Britain’s black population lives – should set an example to the rest of the country.

The National Police Chiefs Council is struggling with a race plan, facing opposition from some officers who feel it goes too far, and community voices who feel it is too weak. Excell said: “The commissioner has to be the leading voice at the heart of the NPCC race inclusion plan, admit institutional racism, apologise for it and prove the Met is anti-racist and anti-prejudice.

“London needs to lead and it starts from the top of the Met. If we don’t have the humility by admitting institutional racism, then we don’t move forward, we continue to go round in circles of mistrust in the community.”

Andy George, president of the National Black Police Association said: “For us the evidence is clear, the Met still meets the definition of institutional racism as defined by Macpherson. The admission of institutional racism is a sign that things are going to be different this time.”

Rowley’s predecessor, Cressida Dick, said the Met was not institutionally racist, and her predecessor, Bernard Hogan-Howe, said he would not argue with anyone who said the Met was. His predecessor, Sir Paul Stephenson, had been the first commissioner to declare the Met was not in 2009, after it was found to be institutionally racist by the Macpherson inquiry a decade earlier.