‘Shameful’ that black boys in London more likely to die by 18 than white boys, says Met chief

Mark Rowley says historically ‘policing has got a lot wrong’ in black communities but ‘we get a lot more right today’

The head of the Metropolitan police has said it is “shameful” that black boys in London are more likely to be dead by 18 than white boys.

Sir Mark Rowley spoke on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, where he said racial disparity among suspects and victims of crime in the capital was a “difficult” issue for the force.

The Met police commissioner said there was a history between policing and black communities “where policing has got a lot wrong, and we get a lot more right today”, adding: “But we do still make mistakes. That’s not in doubt. I’m being as relentless in that as it can be.”

He said: “The vast majority of our people are good people. But that legacy, combined with the tragedy that some of this crime falls most heavily in black communities, that creates a real problem because the legacy creates concern.”

The commissioner added: “It’s not right that black boys growing up in London are more likely to be dead by the time they’re 18, far more likely than white boys. That’s, I think, shameful for the city. The challenge for us is, as we reach in to tackle those issues, that confrontation that comes from that reaching in, whether it’s stop and search on the streets or the sort of operations you seek.

“The danger is that’s landing in an environment with less trust. And that makes it even harder. But the people who win out of that, [are] all of the criminals.”

He added: “I’m so determined to find a way to get past this because if policing in black communities can find a way to confront these issues, together we can give black boys growing up in London equal life chances to white boys, which is not what we’re seeing at the moment.”

Rowley said policing was not the only area that needed scrutiny, with black boys more likely to be excluded from school than white boys as an example. He went on to say that the criminal justice system was “close to broken” and could be “frustrating” for officers.

He said: “The thing that is frustrating is that the system – and no system can be perfect – but when the system hasn’t managed to turn that person’s life around and get them on the straight and narrow, and it just becomes a revolving door. When that happens, of course that’s frustrating for officers.

“So the more successful prisons and probation can be in terms of getting people on to a law-abiding life from the path they’re on, the better.”

Rowley backed “vital” proposals called for by Sir Brian Leveson in his report on the criminal justice system published this week. Among other changes, Leveson called for some offences to be tried without jury.

He gave the example of Snaresbrook crown court in London, which he said had more than 100 cases listed for 2029.

He said: “If it’s someone on bail … and going in for a criminal court trial that could be four years away … That’s pretty unacceptable, isn’t it?”