Dame Cressida Dick has resigned as commissioner of the Metropolitan Police following a wake of scandals and the exposure of racist and sexist messages sent by serving officers.

The announcement comes after mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, put the police chief “on notice” following Operation Hotton, where police at Charing Cross Police Station were found to have sent sexist, racist and homophobic messages that included rape threats and jokes about domestic violence.

While the Met denounced the behaviour as “reprehensible,” it has since emerged that two of the officers investigated were promoted and nine remain within the force.

The operation followed reports that on-duty officers had used derogatory language against a woman during a strip search and an independent inquiry into Sarah Everard’s murder, and whether the force missed any ‘red flags’ during her killer Wayne Couzens’ police career.

The Met is also currently being taken to court by campaign group Reclaim These Streets, over the handling of the public vigil for Everard.

In light of the exposures, the mayor accused Dick of failing to deal with a culture of misogyny and racism within Britain’s biggest force, saying that she had to rapidly reform Scotland Yard or lose his support for her leadership. 

Hours before Dick’s resignation was announced, she was asked by the BBC if she would step down and replied: “I have absolutely no intention of going and I believe that I am and have been, actually for the last five years, leading a real transformation in the Met.”

In a statement, Dick made clear she had been forced out, saying: “It is with huge sadness that, following contact with the mayor of London today, it is clear that the mayor no longer has sufficient confidence in my leadership to continue. He has left me no choice but to step aside as commissioner of the Metropolitan police service.

Following the news of her resignation, the prime minister thanked Dick for “serving her country with great dedication and distinction over many decades.”

However, the widespread response from campaigners and the public has been that her termination does little to tackle the root problem of misogynistic culture and violence against women.

During BBC’s Question Time, one audience member shared her view that the issue around misogyny and policing is not just restricted to the Met.

“While I think the decision of Cressida Dick to go is right, I think that The police are us and we are the police, and misogynistic police reflect a misogynistic society,” she said.

“The problem is deeper than that,” she continued. “The problem is around women’s rights being pushed back generally.”

Highlighting that “the issue has always been institutional, not individual,” campaign group Sisters Uncut also tweeted: “Cressida Dick is resigning but she is leaving behind an institution that is rotten to the core. It was Bristol police who beat Jasmine. The Met police who beat women at Clapham Common.”

Labour MP Nadia Whittome added: “Cressida Dick, who was the officer in charge of the operation that fatally shot Jean Charles de Menezes, never should have been promoted to lead the Met.

She should have resigned after the BLM rallies, Sarah Everard vigil & obstructing the inquiry into police corruption.”

Others highlighted a lack of accountability for the actions and culture that lead to Dick’s resignation.

“I don’t feel cheerful about Cressida Dick leaving. All the terrible men are still there, in the Met and everywhere else,” tweeted the founding leader of the Women’s Equality Party, Sophie Walker.

“Cressida Dick presided over an institution that saw police officers displaying misogynistic behaviour and committing horrific acts of violence against women, time and time again,” Ruth Davidson, CEO of domestic violence charity Refuge, told Stylist.

“But one resignation at the top doesn’t mean the police have solved their misogyny problem. The police service in this country needs root and branch reform – as Refuge has repeatedly called for.

“The Met is an institution that is supposed to uphold the law and protect women and girls from violence and abuse. It’s no wonder women do not feel confident to report crimes committed against them with the Met’s track record. Strong action must be taken by the new Commissioner to rebuild this trust.”

“Cressida Dick has resigned but institutional racism and misogyny remain,” added Black Lives Matter UK.

Images: Getty