London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 22, 2026

Minister says Priti Patel will watch Cressida Dick over police vetting

Minister says Priti Patel will watch Cressida Dick over police vetting

The home secretary will be watching the Metropolitan Police chief "very closely" over the vetting of officers in light of Sarah Everard's murder, Solicitor General Alex Chalk has said.

Ms Everard was killed by Wayne Couzens - a serving police officer - in March, leading to questions for the force over its failure to stop him.

A number of politicians have called for Commissioner Cressida Dick to resign.

Mr Chalk warned Ms Patel would be keeping a close eye on the situation.

Couzens was jailed for a full-life term on Thursday after details emerged of the brutal attack.

He abducted the 33-year-old as she walked home from a friend's house under the guise of an arrest, before raping and killing her.

Dame Cressida said she recognised that a "precious bond of trust" had been damaged by Couzens, who had "brought shame on the Met".

But she soon faced calls to resign, with Labour MP Harriet Harman saying women's confidence in the police "will have been shattered" by the case.

Ms Patel said she would "continue to work with" Dame Cressida, and continue to hold her and the Met to account "as everybody would expect me to do".

'Watching very closely'


Speaking at a Young Conservative Women's event at the party's conference, Mr Chalk told the BBC that the police commissioner needed to look at the vetting issue that allowed Couzens to "slip through the net".

He said a lot of people would be concerned by the case, and "want to be absolutely satisfied that things are about to improve".

But he also issued a warning to Ms Dick that she may not keep the confidence of the home secretary if the issue was not sorted out.

"[Priti Patel] says she has confidence in her, but I suspect the home secretary will be watching very closely to see that the vetting issue is properly investigated and scrutinised," he added.

Meanwhile, the Speaker of the House of Commons has asked for an urgent meeting with the Met after it was confirmed Couzens was on duty five times at Parliament last year.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle said it was "extremely concerning" and also raised questions about police vetting policy.

The Met confirmed Couzens was on armed protection duties at Parliament between February and July 2020.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Mandelson Epstein Case in Jeopardy as U.S. Files Stay Out of Reach
Prince Harry and Six Others Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million After High Court Defeat
The rise and fall of Hui Ka Yan, China’s richest man
Woke: Britain Considers Plain Packaging for Cigars as Specialist Shops Warn of Industry Collapse
Britain's Public-Service Productivity Remains Below 2019 as £80 Billion Output Gap Fuels WFH Debate
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Prince Harry and Co-Claimants Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million Toward Daily Mail Publisher’s Legal Costs
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reportedly Plan Return to Britain With Their Children
UK Court Ruling Threatens Deportation Plans for Potential Trafficking Victims to Albania
Kemi Badenoch Presses UK Government for Decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw Oil Fields
UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Calls for Ban on Goods from Occupied West Bank
Andy Burnham Government to Place Civil Servants Directly in English Mayoral Offices
Met Office Warns Major El Niño Could Bring Stormier, Wetter Autumn to UK
UK Economy Gains Unexpected Momentum Ahead of Andy Burnham Government’s First Budget
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Royal Navy to Accelerate DragonFire Laser Deployment Against Growing Drone Threat
Northern Ireland Approves Five Hundred Million Pound Belfast Harbour Expansion
Great British Railways Takes Full Control of Avanti West Coast as Rail Nationalisation Reaches Final Stage
UK AI Safety Institute Calls for Mandatory Security Audits of Advanced AI Models
Scotland Secures Three Billion Pounds for Floating Offshore Wind Hub in Aberdeen
Government Overrides Local Councils to Approve Green Belt Housing Across Southern England
UK and EU Move Toward Mutual Recognition of Food Standards to Ease Cross-Channel Trade
Government Plans Multibillion-Pound Private Healthcare Expansion to Cut NHS Surgical Backlogs
Bank of England Signals Faster Rate Cuts as Inflation Falls Below the Two Percent Target
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
Moderna Shares Surge After Positive Personalized Skin Cancer Trial Results
UK Markets Watch US National Debt Surpass Forty Trillion Dollars
UK Broadcasters Urge Government to Invest in Digital Participation and Broadband
CVC Capital Partners and Standard Life Launch Two Billion Pound Pension Risk Transfer Venture
UK Private Sector Productivity Growth Accelerates in Second Quarter
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband Condemns Israeli E1 Settlement Tender
UK Watchdog Investigates Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School Over Hidden Fees
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Plan Move to Private Home Outside London
UK Retail Sentiment Improves as Summer Spending Boosts Consumer Confidence
UK Aid Cuts Draw Warnings From Charities Over Humanitarian Consequences
UK Financial Conduct Authority Issues Guidance for Motor Finance Redress Scheme
UK Met Office Launches Aviation Programme to Reduce Climate Impact of Persistent Contrails
Former UK Civil Service Chief Received Record 500,000 Pound Severance Payment
West Midlands to Bring Bus Network Under Public Franchising Model
UK Government Drops Plan to Relax Affordable Housing Requirements After Backlash
×