The Metropolitan Police force has appointed Sir Mark Rowley as its new commissioner on an initial five-year term.
57-year-old Sir Mark started his career as a West Midlands police constable in 1987, joining the Met in 2011 after a spell as chief constable of Surrey Police starting in 2008.
Between 2014 and 2018, Sir Mark led the counter-terrorism unit at the Met and was knighted for his role in responding to the bombing at Manchester Arena and attacks at Westminster Bridge and London Bridge. He has since been working in the private sector, as well as working on a review carried out by the Commission for Countering Terrorism.
Sir Mark has now secured the Met’s top job, which he first applied for in 2017, only for the role to eventually go to Dame Cressida Dick.
Sir Mark now succeeds Dame Cressida, after she stood down in February.
After being appointed, Sir Mark said in a statement that he would deliver “more trust, less crime and high standards for London”, after a series of scandals from within the force had led to the downfall of his predecessor and damaged public trust in the police.
Some of these included the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving Met officer, and the uncovering of racist, sexist, predatory and homophobic messages exchanged between officers based at Charing Cross.
Sir Mark said: “Our mission is to lead the renewal of policing by consent which has been so heavily dented in recent years, as trust and confidence have fallen.
“We will deliver more trust, less crime and high standards for London and beyond, and we will work with London's diverse communities as we together renew the uniquely British invention of 'policing by consent'.”
Home secretary Priti Patel welcomed the appointment and is relishing looking forward to working with the new commissioner.
She said: “I look forward to working closely with Sir Mark. This will be a challenging period, but with a focus on tackling neighbourhood crime and delivering the basics of policing, Sir Mark is committed to tackling the significant challenges confronting the force and to making London's streets safer by driving down crime and bringing more criminals to justice."
Photo by Surrey County Council News - Have Your Say on Wikimedia Commons
