Vetting withdrawn from MPS officers from November 2023 and November 2024

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.24.014156

I note you seek access to the following information:

1. How many Met Police officers have had their vetting withdrawn in the past year, how many of these have been dismissed, resigned, or are appealing.
2. Of those dismissed, how much has been paid out in severance pay?

Decision

I have today decided to disclose the located information to you in full.

Please find below information pursuant to your request above.

How many Met Police officers have had their vetting withdrawn in the past year, how many of these have been dismissed, resigned, or are appealing.

Vetting assesses the suitability of someone to work in the Met. It is removed when no other risk mitigation measures are deemed appropriate. Removal of vetting involves a rigorous multi-stage process:

• Recommendation to withdraw vetting by a Vetting Officer, following a review of all the available information and an interview, if appropriate.
• Decision to withdraw vetting by a senior vetting manager.
• An appeal stage heard by a Chief Officer or police staff equivalent, where the officer/staff member may make representations. The appeal may result in the original decision to withdraw vetting being maintained or overturned.

Where vetting is withdrawn (and any appeal is unsuccessful), a separate process independent of vetting, known as Gross Incompetence (GI), commences to determine if there are any roles within the organisation that can be undertaken without vetting. If not, the officer/staff may be dismissed.

Between 22/11/2023 and 22/11/2024, 53 officers have had their vetting withdrawn. This this does not include police staff.

Of the 53 withdrawn:

• 20 are at the appeal stage (1 within the period where they are allowed to appeal, 19 with appeals are ongoing)
• 4 have had appeals granted and clearance re-instated
• 29 have progressed past the appeal stage to the GI stage (7 did not appeal, 22 have had their appeals dismissed)

Of the 29 who have progressed past the appeal stage to GI:

• 14 are awaiting GI hearings
• 2 have been dismissed following GI hearings
• 1 has been dismissed via Reg. 13 (probation)
• 6 left after the appeal was dismissed but before a GI hearing
• 6 left having not appealed, and before a GI hearing

Q2 - Of those dismissed, how much has been paid out in severance pay?

£0