Following the resignation of Dame Cressida Dick as the Metropolitan Police commissioner, speculation has already begun surrounding her replacement.
Dame Cressida announced on Thursday that she would be stepping down after losing the backing of London Mayor Sadiq Khan in the wake of a series of scandals during her tenure leading Britain’s biggest police force.
With no clear frontrunner to replace the outgoing commissioner, here is a look at some of the likely candidates, one of whom started his career here in Lancashire:
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One of the possible contenders, Chief Constable Stephen Watson, formerly of Lancashire Constabulary, with Andy Burnham.
. Stephen Watson
*Dubbed one of the “most experienced senior officers in the country”, Stephen Watson has been an officer since 1988 when he first joined Lancashire Constabulary. *He was appointed to Merseyside Police in 2006 on promotion to Chief Superintendent and joined the Met in 2011 as Commander for the East Area. *He became chief constable of Greater Manchester Police in May 2021.
. Matt Jukes
*Matt Jukes, an assistant Metropolitan Police commissioner currently working as head of counter-terrorism, is seen by many commentators as a likely contender. *Mr Jukes first joined South Yorkshire Police as a Pc before moving to South Wales Police and working his way up the ranks. *He rose to become chief constable of South Wales Police before returning to the Metropolitan Police as an assistant commissioner in 2020. *So unlike Dame Cressida, who never ran her own force before becoming commissioner, he has prior experience at the helm.
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One of the possible contenders, Chief Constable Stephen Watson, formerly of Lancashire Constabulary, with Andy Burnham.
2. Stephen Watson
*Dubbed one of the “most experienced senior officers in the country”, Stephen Watson has been an officer since 1988 when he first joined Lancashire Constabulary. *He was appointed to Merseyside Police in 2006 on promotion to Chief Superintendent and joined the Met in 2011 as Commander for the East Area. *He became chief constable of Greater Manchester Police in May 2021.
3. Matt Jukes
*Matt Jukes, an assistant Metropolitan Police commissioner currently working as head of counter-terrorism, is seen by many commentators as a likely contender. *Mr Jukes first joined South Yorkshire Police as a Pc before moving to South Wales Police and working his way up the ranks. *He rose to become chief constable of South Wales Police before returning to the Metropolitan Police as an assistant commissioner in 2020. *So unlike Dame Cressida, who never ran her own force before becoming commissioner, he has prior experience at the helm.
4. Neil Basu
*Another assistant commissioner who previously worked as the head of counter-terrorism, is also thought to be a likely candidate. *Mr Basu has spent his entire career serving in the Metropolitan Police. *In a 2019 interview with The Guardian, he said that if someone used the racially offensive comments Boris Johnson had, they would not be admitted into the police force.For some, the comments were seen as political and could prove detrimental to his chances of succeeding Dame Cressida. *But Mr Basu is popular among officers and is still widely seen as capable. *He is also the most senior police officer of Asian heritage and would be the first minority ethnic commissioner.
5. Lucy D'Orsi
*Another potential replacement is Lucy D’Orsi, the Chief Constable of the British Transport Police. *She previously worked as a senior officer at the Metropolitan Police. *During her career, she was in charge of the police response to the Beaufort Park fire in 2006 and she headed up security during Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to the UK in 2015. *She would be following in Dame Cressida’s footsteps as the second woman to become Metropolitan Police commissioner. Image: Flickr
6. Nick Ephgrave
*Nick Ephgrave (left), assistant commissioner for frontline policing, is also in with a chance of getting the top job. *Mr Ephgrave began his career at the Metropolitan Police but moved to become chief constable of Surrey Police in late 2015. *In 2019, he returned to the Metropolitan Police as an assistant commissioner, so ike Mr Jukes, he also already has experience leading a police force.