Minutes

Minutes of the Professional Standards and Performance Monitoring Committee meeting of the Metropolitan Police Authority held in AG16, Romney House, Westminster on Tuesday 13 February 2001.

Present

Members

• Richard Sumray (Chair)
• Elizabeth Howlett (Deputy Chair)
• Anthony Arbour
• Reshard Auladin
• Roger Evans
• Lynne Featherstone
• R David Muir

MPA staff

• Catherine Crawford (Clerk)
• Johanna Gillians (Senior Analyst)

MPS staff

• Ian Blair (Deputy Commissioner)
• Andy Hayman (Commander, Professional Standards)
• Cath  Kitching (Corporate Performance Analysis Unit)
• Barbara Riddell (Director of Corporate Development)

In addition, approximately 13 members of the press/public and other MPA/MPS staff were present.

Part 1

51. Apologies

(Agenda item 1)

No apologies were received.

52. Minutes of meeting: 9 January 2001

(Agenda item 2)

The minutes of the last meeting were agreed as a correct record.

Resolved:
that the minutes of the meeting held on 9 January 2001 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

53. MPS performance report – December 2000

(Agenda item 3)

Members received a report providing an overview of MPS performance, and a full listing of Policing Plan and Best Value indicators.

Questions were asked about the revision of the figure relating to disabled access to police buildings. Members were informed that the definition for such access had recently changed, but that the MPS was aiming at compliance with the revised definition by 2004.

It was noted that the street crime judicial disposal rate was falling. The MPS's Performance Review Committee was looking at this, and territorial commanders had been asked to share best practice.

The targets for autocrime and autocrime disposals, linked to national targets, were unlikely on present trends, to be achieved. Ministers might, at some point, be invited to discuss the MPS's performance in these areas.

The fall in civil staff strength was noted. In answer to a question, the Deputy Commissioner stated that there were vacancies in all grades, but particularly amongst the lowest paid and some specialists. He added that no pay initiatives could be made until after the GLA budget was set on 15 February. The number of officers seconded from the MPS to boundary change forces, and plans for their return, were also discussed.

Resolved:
that the contents of the report be noted.

54. Street crime analysis

(Agenda item 4)

Members received a report that provided a commentary on street crime trends, and information about the time of offences, age of offenders, property taken and the use of weapons.

Street crime was largely an inner city problem, with only the metropolitan forces dealing with significant numbers of offences. Victims were themselves predominately young. After financial property, a significant target was mobile phones. The Deputy Commissioner stated that a worrying aspect of this offence was that many of those arrested were not recidivists, but first time offenders, who in the in the past would have only slowly graduated to this kind of crime. Efforts were being made to understand this phenomenon. Peer pressure, the desirability of mobile phones, gang culture, initiation rites, and the increasing difficulty of other crimes (like burglary) were all potentially important factors.

Members noted that offenders and victims fell disproportionately within certain ethnic groupings, and it was agreed that transparent efforts needed to be made to engage these communities in seeking a solution.

Resolved:
that the contents of the report be noted.

55. Drugs update – operation crackdown

(Agenda item 5)

The report received supported a previous paper on drug performance submitted to the October PSPM meeting. It provided details of recent work in this area, specifically Operation Crackdown and the "Rat on a Rat" campaign. The results of Operation Crackdown, in terms of the impact on crime levels in the boroughs involved, were being independently evaluated by South Bank University. It was requested that results of the evaluation be included in the next drugs update report.

Resolved:

1. the contents of the report be noted; and
2. the results of the independent evaluation of Operation Crackdown be included in the next planned drugs update report.

56. Role of members in reviewing and responding to high profile complaints and discipline cases

(Agenda item 6)

(Secretary's Note: This item was dealt with after item 2.)

Members received a report that recommended guidelines that would inform the nature and level of involvement Committee Members should have in reviewing and responding to high profile complaints and discipline cases. The principles underlying the protocol at appendix 2 were accepted and it was agreed that a further paper be submitted to the Committee, incorporating the paper and appendix into one document.

Resolved:

1. the protocol relating to Members' involvement with individual complaints, set out in Appendix 2, be approved; and
2. a further paper come to a future meeting of the PSPM.

57. MPA'S views on proposals to reform the investigation of complaints against police officers

(Agenda item 7)

Following the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, the Home Office commissioned a report on the feasibility of an independent system for investigating complaints against the police. A consultation paper was published in May 2000, to which the APA and the MPS responded. In December, the Home Office published 'Complaints against the police - framework for a new system', which proposed a framework for a new complaints procedure and sought comment on specific questions by 28 February 2001. Members received a report that outlined the main changes to previous reports, highlighted the potential role of the police authority and sought Member's views. It was noted that any changes would require primary legislation and take 2-3 years to implement. A copy of the MPS response was also circulated at the meeting.

Members agreed that the MPA's main function was to secure an effective and efficient police service for London, which included holding the Commissioner to account for the direction and control of the MPS. To transfer responsibility for dealing with complaints about the direction and control of the MPS to the IPCC or HMIC could potentially undermine this role. It was also noted that the workload proposed by the PCA would have a very large resource implication for a new organization. The Chair requested that any comments on this paper be addressed to the Clerk, who would circulate a draft response to Members for comment prior to despatch to the Home Office.

Resolved:
that the draft response should recommend that:

1. complaints concerning the direction and control of the a force should continue to be within the police authority's remit;
2. complaints against ACPO ranks should be investigated or supervised by the IPCC only after the MPA has determined that investigation is appropriate;
3. allegations of serious corruption involving police officers and serious arrestable offences allegedly committed by a police officer should not automatically be referred to the IPCC;
4. police forces should acknowledge where errors have been made or police officers have acted improperly in all cases where appropriate;
5. police authorities maintain a list of trained, independent people to be members of police discipline panels;
6. any comments on the paper be addressed to the Clerk, who would circulate a draft response to Members before responding to the Home Office.

(Secretary's note: The deadline for responses was subsequently extended.)

58. MPA response to the report into the concerns raised by the Lindo family and consideration of the MPS action plan

(Agenda item 8)

(This agenda item did not appear on the agenda circulated to the public, however, the Chair felt that it was appropriate and timely to discuss the issues raised in the accompanying report at this meeting).

The report asked Members to consider the MPA's written response to the MPS' inquiry into the concerns of the Lindo family, and the MPS' action plan for implementation of the report's recommendations. The Deputy Commissioner stated that formal complaints were being investigated by the PCA. A public apology had been made by a senior officer and it was hoped that other complaints might be resolved by mediation. Progress would be followed by this committee.

Resolved:

1. the proposed written response from the MPA to the MPS concerning implementation of the action plan be agreed;
2. the action plan and progress to date be noted; and
3. future progress be followed by this Committee.

59. Exclusion of press and public

(Agenda item 9)

A resolution was put to exclude the press and public from the meeting during agenda item 10 'Police Regulations' as it would be likely to disclose exempt information as described in paragraph 1 of Schedule 12(a) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

Resolved:
that the press and public be excluded from the meeting for item 1o on the grounds that it involved disclosure of exempt information as detailed in the paragraph 1 of Schedule 12(a) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

60. Police regulations (exempt)

(Agenda item 10)

The Committee considered two confidential reports by the Clerk, which had been circulated to Members of the Committee only.

Resolved:
that the recommendations to the reports be approved.

The meeting finished at 4.50pm.

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