Eight former or serving chief constables are under disciplinary action. That stark figure, revealed by former home secretary Lord Blunkett, sets the scene for a damning government-backed report that finds police leadership in England and Wales is riddled with “nepotism and bias” and in need of a “fundamental overhaul”.
The report, co-chaired by Lord Blunkett and the former Conservative policing minister Lord Herbert for the College of Policing, concludes that the service is “not good enough” and requires an “ethical reset”. Speaking exclusively to the BBC ahead of its publication on Monday, Lord Blunkett said the evidence pointed to “a very large number of those at senior level who have been or are under investigation”. He added: “At the moment, the service isn't good enough. At the moment, the morale and motivation of many of those working in the service needs a reset.”
“Police leadership in England and Wales is plagued by nepotism and bias, requiring an 'ethical reset', a major report finds.”
The inquiry examined all 43 forces in England and Wales and found a “postcode lottery” in how well the public is served. None were graded “outstanding” for leadership in the most recent inspection round; almost a third were rated as needing improvement, and two as inadequate. The report says leaders are “insufficiently focused on delivering outcomes for the public”, such as cutting crime. “Some forces are very good but some have lost focus on cutting crime,” Lord Herbert told the Guardian.
“Put simply, leadership in policing is not consistently of a high enough standard to provide confidence and trust in the attainment of the service which the public deserves,” the report states. Since 2018, there have been 78 investigations into police leaders from the rank of assistant chief constable upwards. The Independent Office for Police Conduct found “common themes … involve cronyism, nepotism, abuse of position for a sexual purpose and corruption”, the report says.
One case highlighted is that of former Northamptonshire chief constable Nick Adderley, who was dismissed after lying on his CV and has since been charged with fraud and misconduct in public office. Lord Blunkett told the Guardian that some findings were “staggeringly” poor. The report recommends a “root and branch modernisation” of recruitment, development and monitoring, pointing to challenges including scarce resources, excessive paperwork, and officers demotivated by “negative and overly risk averse leadership cultures”.
Lord Blunkett was also asked about claims of “two-tier policing”, a term used by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage in connection with the murder of Henry Nowak. The prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has rejected those claims. Lord Blunkett’s response was not given in the sources, but the report itself leaves no doubt: a reset is needed from top to bottom.