Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 5
5
Deferred
Mandate common national standards for police vetting, making vetting upon transfer statutory
Recommendation
Common standards for vetting should be enforced nationally, with sanctions upon non-compliant forces. We recommend the Government make vetting upon transfer a statutory requirement within the lifetime of the current Parliament. It should also ensure all forces immediately implement His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services’s recommendation on re-vetting officers of concern, including those who have been subject to a criminal investigation, received a formal warning or reduction in rank following a misconduct hearing, or where “adverse information” has otherwise come to the force’s notice. We recommend the Home Office monitor how local policing bodies are holding their chief constables accountable for implementing the recommendation, taking remedial action swiftly where accountability is found lacking or progress in implementation unsatisfactory. We invite the Home Office to report its progress on this in six months’ time: that report should include details of monitoring mechanisms and any remedial steps taken or planned. (Paragraph 18) 60 Policing priorities
Government Response Summary
The government noted the NPCC's work on continuous integrity screening and general efforts to allow officers to report wrongdoing, but did not commit to enforcing common national vetting standards with sanctions, making vetting upon transfer statutory, or ensuring immediate re-vetting of officers of concern.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
14. The NPCC asked all forces to check officers and staff against the PND. Aside from this, the NPCC is working to develop a continuous integrity screening programme which will aim to improve intelligence sharing/flagging across policing. 15. Police forces should have measures in place to allow police officers and staff to come forward to report wrongdoing by colleagues in confidence if necessary. These issues have formed part of HMICFRS inspections in the past. In addition, the IOPC has a confidential reporting line for officers and staff to report wrongdoing by their policing colleagues. The IOPC’s effectiveness has been reviewed as part of the independent review by Dr Gillian Fairfield and is being considered by the Home Office as noted above. Part 2 of the Angiolini Inquiry is also examining wider issues in policing, including the effectiveness of whistleblowing processes.