Head of London’s Metropolitan Police resigns after string of scandals

Mayor Sadiq Khan had recently threatened to oust Cressida Dick, saying she wasn’t doing enough to tackle growing accusations of misogyny and racism within her ranks.

The head of London’s Metropolitan Police, Cressida Dick, said she is resigning Thursday after a string of controversies that undermined public confidence in the force and prompted a falling out between her and the capital’s mayor.

Mayor Sadiq Khan had recently threatened to oust Dick from her role, saying she wasn’t doing enough to reform the Metropolitan Police, Britain’s largest police force, and tackle growing accusations of misogyny and racism within her ranks.

Khan said late Thursday it was clear the only way to overhaul the force urgently was to have “new leadership right at the top.”

Dick, who has headed the force since 2017 and is the first woman to lead Scotland Yard, said it was with “huge sadness” that it has become clear that Khan “no longer has sufficient confidence in my leadership to continue.”

“He has left me no choice but to step aside as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service,” she said in a statement.

Dick, 61, added that she will stay in her role for a short period to ensure the force’s stability while a replacement is found.

A report last week by the Independent Office for Police Conduct, the police watchdog, condemned misogyny, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment among a dozen officers, most of them based in central London’s Charing Cross police station.

The report cited officers joking about rape and using other offensive language in social media messages, and said the incidents were part of a wider culture that can’t be blamed on a few “bad apples.”