The Metropolitan Police is shaken by yet another scandal that explains why whistleblowers have no confidence in whistleblowing procedures.

Yet another bad week for the London Metropolitan Police after former police officer David Carrick pleaded guilty to a string of offences committed over the course of 17 years that has eroded what little confidence women had in the police to keep them safe.

We commend the bravery of the women who have spoken out to ensure another dangerous individual is no longer at large in society.

This week the Home Affairs Select Committee heard first hand from Andy Cooke QPM DL, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary & Fire and Rescue Services and Steve Hartshorn and Harvi Khatkar, from Police Federation of England & Wales and Police Superintendents' Association about the response of the police to this latest in a string of serious incidents.

Whistleblowing is the first line of defence against wrongdoing and Tim Loughton MP wanted to know about how whistleblowers are treated. He asked whether the Inspectorate collects the data on whistleblowing cases within the Police. Rather embarrassingly the HMI had to declare that he did not know, raising serious concerns from the panel about the role of the regulator. Tim Loughton observed that “when asked if they [Police] have a whistleblowing policy they will say yes, but if asked, “How many cases have you had?”, they will say, “Oh, we’ve only had two or three.” He declared that this “is a sign of weakness.” [in the whistleblowing procedure].

So what does this admission tell us about whistleblowing in the police? 

We have to conclude that not only are the HMI non-compliant with their obligation but that the entire process is completely flawed, little more than a tick box exercise. Officers that we have spoken to are deeply unhappy with the way that whistleblowing is treated across the police forces globally. 

The data that is used to measure the success of whistleblowing is not only inaccurate it is simply meaningless.

All available evidence demonstrates that organisations with low reporting rates are significantly more likely to experience serious incidents that are then frequently reported in the press. While proactive organisations with high levels of reporting are happier and less likely to have serious incidents. (Navex, 2022)

What we know for certain is having no whistleblowers is a sign of problems and high levels of reports is likely to be a sign of trust and commitment to the organisation. 

Police forces may have confidential phone lines but what is clear is that, at least within the London Metropolitan Police, there is a prevailing cultural issue that undermines trust and confidence in them. The introduction of yet another hotline by the Home Secretary is not unlikely to embolden officers, police staff or the public. We continue to call on the Government to take this opportunity to normalise whistleblowing by transforming the legislation that underpins it by introducing The Office of the Whistleblower (OWB) proposed by the APPG for Whistleblowing. The OWB will establish best practices setting standards for policy, procedure and reporting platforms helping organisations to encourage speaking up at the earliest opportunity. 

As the case of David Carrick demonstrates, Whistleblowing is more than just an employment issue and we continue to impress upon the Government the importance of our proposals and ask them to bring it into law to help prevent yet more harm to the public.

“On behalf of the directors and members of WhistleblowersUK I condemn the behaviour of David Carrick and those who are responsible for covering up for him. We urge the Met to introduce an independent platform and professional support that will enable victims of abuse to come forward in complete confidence in this case and others. Normalisation of whistleblowing has to be an immediate priority by making the reporting of concerns effective and 

This is an opportunity for the Metropolitan Police to demonstrate real leadership by developing a totally new approach to whistleblowing that protects women. Whistleblowers are the vital element that will allow the police to uncover and deal with wrongdoing in its ranks.”   Georgina Halford-Hall, CEO WhistleblowersUK.