Disgraced officers from national law enforcement agencies will be
blocked from joining local police forces, as the government
continues its drive to raise standards and conduct within law
enforcement.
The Home Office has today introduced legislation to provide for a
dedicated National Crime Agency (NCA) barred and advisory list
within the landmark Crime and Policing Bill, as part of the Plan
for Change.
This new measure will ensure that individuals dismissed from the
NCA for gross misconduct are prevented from re-entering policing
or any other law enforcement role.
In addition to the NCA, the legislation will also establish new
barred and advisory lists for other special police forces,
including the British Transport Police (BTP), Civil Nuclear
Constabulary (CNC), and Ministry of Defence Police (MDP). Each
force's list will be maintained by its respective authority, and
law enforcement employers across England and Wales will be
required to check these lists before hiring.
Where an individual is on the barred list, law enforcement
agencies will not be able to employ them, and where an individual
is named on the advisory list, the employer will be obligated to
take this into consideration as part of the recruitment
process.
Expanding the number of agencies with these lists will tighten
recruitment standards across law enforcement and prevent those
who have been dismissed from re-entering the system in a
different role.
Policing Minister, Dame said:
“The public deserve to know that those tasked with protecting
them meet the highest standards.
“Under our Safer Streets mission, and our Plan for Change, we
are restoring confidence in policing by removing those who
undermine it.
“This new measure ensures that officers who abuse their
position in the NCA cannot resurface in other areas of policing —
we will continue taking every possible step to protect the
integrity of our law enforcement agencies.”
Assistant Chief Constable for Civil Nuclear Constabulary,
Kerry , lead for Professionalism,
said:
“We welcome the Government's move to close this legislative
loop-hole. It will prevent those officers who fail to uphold our
rigorous standards from being employed again within policing and
law enforcement.
“We maintain robust vetting and professional standards, but
in the rare instance of one of our officers being dismissed for
gross misconduct, these measures will ensure that there is a
process to ensure the public are protected and we can maintain
trust and confidence in policing.”
The move follows a 2023 inspection by His Majesty's Inspectorate
of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), which
found that some former NCA officers dismissed for gross
misconduct had been able to join police forces due to gaps in
current vetting procedures. The new legislation will close this
loophole, further aligning the NCA with the existing police
barred and advisory list system.
The NCA barred and advisory list will be UK-wide and will be
maintained by the NCA with support from the College of Policing.
Police forces and other UK-wide law enforcement bodies will be
required to consult the list before making recruitment decisions,
ensuring that those dismissed for serious misconduct cannot
re-enter the system through the back door.
The new legislation forms part of a series of government reforms
to boost public confidence in policing as part of its Safer
Streets Mission and Plan for Change. It follows reforms to the
Police Appeals Tribunal which will also be included in the Crime
and Policing Bill, in addition to enhanced vetting and dismissal
procedures that have been announced recently.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- For more information on today's release, contact the Home
Office Newsdesk on 0300 123 3535 or out of hours on 07623 514
628.
- These latest measures have been introduced to Parliament at
Report stage of the Crime and Policing Bill.
