Police officers to face quicker sackings for gross misconduct in England and Wales

The government has announced that police officers guilty of gross misconduct in England and Wales will face automatic sackings. 

The change follows high-profile cases of police officers committing rape and murder, such as rapist and killer Wayne Couzens and serial rapist David Carrick. 

Under the new system, chief constables or their deputies will chair misconduct panels hearing serious allegations against officers. Until now the panels have been chaired by an independent lawyer. 

The Police Regulations will also be changed to allow cops who fail re-vetting checks to be dismissed. 

Policing minister Chris Philp said the changes would target the “small minority of police officers who let down the police force, and therefore let down the public”.

“They will make sure there is nowhere to hide for officers who don’t deserve to wear the uniform,” he told BBC Breakfast.

Sir Mark Rowley has been publicly campaigning for the change, telling MPs in April that independent lawyers are “more forgiving” of bad behaviour than senior police officers.