The Met police chief quit after the London Mayor withdrew his support
Met police chief Dame Cressida Dick has confirmed she is leaving her role after London Mayor Sadiq Khan made it clear he has lost confidence in her.
Dame Cressida’s resignation comes after a damning report into misogyny, discrimination, and sexual harassment at the Met, though there have been repeated calls for her to quit in recent years, including over the policing of a vigil in the aftermath of Sarah Everard’s murder.
Read more: Cressida Dick: All the times the Met Police boss got it wrong
Everard was kidnapped, raped, and murdered by serving Met police officer Wayne Couzens in March last year.
Dame Cressida said she had been left with “no choice” after losing Khan’s support. But just hours, on Thursday evening, she told the BBC she had “absolutely no intention” of quitting.
In her resignation statement, Dame Cressida said she had “agreed to stay for a short period to ensure the stability of the Met”. Her successor will be appointed by the home secretary, in consultation with Khan.
The BBC suggested that contenders for the role would include Matt Jukes and Neil Basu, who are both assistant Met commissioners.
Khan had earlier said that he was “not satisfied” with Dame Cressida’s response to the scale of change required to “root out” the problems identified in the watchdog report.
“On being informed of this, Dame Cressida Dick has said she will be standing aside,” he said.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Dame Cressida “has served her country with great dedication and distinction over many decades”.
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