Profile: Met Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe

Bernard Hogan-Howe, the newly-appointed Metropolitan Police Commissioner, fits the bill for the "single-minded crime fighter" sought by the home secretary.



Theresa May had made the call after his predecessor Sir Paul Stephenson, and his assistant John Yates, quit amid criticism of the Met's role in the phone-hacking scandal.

And the former Merseyside Police chief was well-placed to take on the job of the UK's top police officer, having been called on to act as the Met's deputy commissioner in the wake of the resignations.

During five years on Merseyside to 2009, Mr Hogan-Howe developed a high profile via regular web chats and broadcasts, appearances on local radio phone-ins and horseback rides through the city centre.

And he earned admirers for his tough approach to anti-social behaviour and stance on gun crime in the wake of the fatal shooting of 11-year-old Rhys Jones.

Born in Sheffield, the football enthusiast's rise through the ranks began with South Yorkshire Police in 1979.

'Tough stance'

He worked as a traffic officer, detective and district commander, gaining an MA in law from Oxford University and a diploma in applied criminology from Cambridge University along the way.

In 1997 he moved to Merseyside police and four years later joined the Met as an assistant commissioner, before returning to Liverpool in 2004.

During that time, crime dropped by a third, and the force claims anti-social behaviour rates were cut in half through a zero-tolerance approach.

Bernard Hogan-Howe's career

1979: South Yorkshire Police

1997: Assistant Chief Constable, Merseyside

2001: Assistant Commissioner, Metropolitan Police

2004: Chief Constable of Merseyside

2009: HM Inspectorate of Constabulary

He hit the headlines in 2006 for sprinting after a suspected drink-driver after spotting him from his chauffeur-driven car.

Mr Hogan-Howe was the man in charge in 2007, when 11-year-old Rhys Jones was shot dead as he walked home from football practice.

The killing horrified the nation and there were grumblings from some in the media when there was no immediate arrest.

But Mr Hogan-Howe got his man in December 2008 when Sean Mercer, 18, was jailed for life and several members of his gang were also locked up.

'Clear philosophy'

That year, he accused some judges of being lenient on gun crime by overlooking mandatory five-year sentences for possession of a firearm.

He also called for those shielding gun criminals from police to be evicted from homes.

Mr Hogan-Howe set up the specialist Matrix team to tackle gun crime - the first of its kind outside London.









The home secretary and London mayor were "of one mind" in appointing Mr Hogan-Howe.

The unit's former head, Det Supt Geoff Sloane, said: "When he came he had a clear philosophy. It was to tackle organised crime, gang-related crime but also to make sure victims were properly supported, which was backed up by strong neighbourhood policing."

Before leaving Merseyside, he applied to succeed Sir Hugh Orde as chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

However, he withdrew from the application process to take up a role with Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabularies.

He was called back to the Met in July to support Acting Commissioner Tim Godwin - later a rival for the top job - in bringing stability to the force after Sir Paul Stephenson's resignation.

The home secretary and London Mayor Boris Johnson said they were "of one mind" in their decision to appoint Mr Hogan-Howe.

Mrs May cited his "excellent track-record" in reducing crime had proven the deciding factor.

May Warned That Rioters Could Target 2012 Games

Gangs involved in last month's riots could attempt to disrupt the 2012 London Olympics, Theresa May, the Home Secretary, was told yesterday.











Fears over attempts to disrupt the Games have been privately relayed by a former police officer to the Commons home affairs select committee, which is examining the worse wave of unrest to hit England for 30 years.

MPs on the committee confronted her with the warning from a recently retired officer who served on Operation Trident, the Met's operation against gun crime in the black community. Ms May, appearing before the committee, acknowledged the danger that the gangs could use the Olympics as a catalyst for looting and violence.

She said the team planning Olympic security was examining the riots to see if there were implications for the safe staging of the Games. David Cameron originally blamed gangs for much of the trouble and said he was seeking advice from Bill Bratton, the US police chief, on tackling the problem.

However, Ms May accepted the proportion of gang members involved in the unrest was "not as high as people first thought". But she added: "There is some evidence that obviously there was some gang activity taking place in terms of encouraging people to take part in these events and as we saw, some of that encouragement was being propagated on social media."

She announced she was staging an international conference next month to share ideas for the best way of tackling gang culture. Ms May refused to be drawn on the causes of the sudden outbreak of rioting.

May To Hold Summit On Gang Culture

Theresa May, home secretary, is to host an international summit on how the country should deal with gangs, as part of the government’s response to last month’s riots.












Ms May, who appeared in front of MPs at the home affairs select committee on Thursday, conceded that only about a quarter of those involved in the violence in August are now thought to have had gang affiliations – fewer than thought. However, she said it was still vital to bring the problem under control.

“We are looking as widely as possible at what has worked [elsewhere] to make sure that what has worked is put in process,” Ms May said.

The home secretary reiterated that the government will also be canvassing the views of organisers of successful gang projects in the UK, such as the Strathclyde police scheme in Glasgow and another council-funded initiative in Waltham Forest, north London.

The prime minister has already announced that Bill Bratton, former chief of both New York and Los Angeles police departments, will be flying to the UK to give advice at the event in October.

However David Lammy, Labour MP for Tottenham – the borough in which the rioting started after the fatal police shooting of local resident Mark Duggan – suggested the focus should be on reassuring communities that the police would be able to restrain criminals more effectively in the future.

“We must never, ever allow criminals and gang members to run the streets,” he told the committee in an impassioned outburst. “The advances in community policing were important, but it needed to go further.”

Mr Lammy said he had concerns about Operation Trident, the Metropolitan Police’s campaign to reduce gun crime in the black community, which organised the operation when Mr Duggan was shot.

“When police come in from outside the borough, things can go wrong,” Mr Lammy said.

The MP added that he had seen evidence that riot perpetrators had been inciting violence on BlackBerry Messenger days before the disorder in Tottenham began. “I am deeply worried that the police seemed unaware of these networks,” Mr Lammy told the committee.

Separately, in a speech at the children’s charity Barnardo’s, Sadiq Khan, shadow justice secretary, castigated Ken Clarke, justice secretary, for making “simplistic assertions” when he called rioters a “feral underclass”.

“This kind of language absolves people from responsibility for their actions, implying that somehow they had no self-control or no choice,” Mr Khan said.

“Instead we will be looking at how we can make young people responsible citizens who understand the consequences of their actions and have the opportunities and the means to stay away from crime.”

Lib Dems Seek Candidates For Police Commissioner Posts, Despite Peer Revolt

Battle lines drawn as party touts for suitable candidates while its own peers work to derail controversial Tory policy.












Lib Dem peers hope to derail Theresa May's plan for elected police commissioners.

The Liberal Democrats are advertising for candidates to become elected police commissioners despite the party's peers still believing they can derail the policy in the House of Lords.

The bill to bring in one of the prime minister's and home secretary's most cherished policies was defeated in the Lords by Lib Dem peers in the last parliamentary term.

The Lords and Commons must now get together soon after parliament reconvenes in the autumn to agree how the legislation will reflect the Lords vote. The scene is set for a battle as Tories in the lower house do not want to water down their policy.

They are now highlighting the fact that the Lib Dems themselves are touting for candidates – a fact seized on as evidence that the party has little faith in its parliamentary efforts to derail the bill.

Campaigners in favour of elected police commissioners intend to have legislation in place in time for the first batch of police commissioners to be elected on the same day as next May's local elections.

The longer into the autumn the Lib Dems can delay the bill, the less likely that becomes, given the time the electoral commission would need to make the necessary arrangements.

In a speech delivered last week, the home secretary, Theresa May, used the police response to the riots to push her case again. "One thing is clear. The experience … makes the case for police reform more urgent than ever."

Senior Lib Dems opposed to the policy fear an elected police commissioner might play to a particular portion of their electorate in a bid for popularity. Cost is also a concern. According to a Home Office answer to a parliamentary question, the system could cost £130m to set up and run and another £50m every four years at election time – this while the government asks the police to cut their costs by 20%.

Peers voted in May against introducing elected commissioners, leaving open the possibility of their being appointed by a board of experts.

Tory sources said the issue was one of trust between David Cameron and Nick Clegg as the Lib Dem leader acquiesced to the policy in the coalition negotiations.

The coalition agreement reads: "We will introduce measures to make the police more accountable through oversight by a directly elected individual, who will be subject to strict checks and balances by locally elected representatives."

Advisers now say there is a small window of time for Clegg to decide whether he is going to face down his peers in the Lords to ensure the legislation is passed.

Blair Gibbs, research director at Policy Exchange said: "This policy has clear support from the top and if anything, after recent months, the argument for a clearer system of police accountability is stronger than ever.

"Most senior police officers now accept this reform is going to happen. There are some unelected peers and local councillors with a vested interest in the old regime who are still grumbling, but they cannot stop this reform from happening.

"The mandate is clear and the main parties are starting to plan for the elections and search for good candidates. It is no longer a case of if and why we should have police and crime commissioners, or even how and when, but who.

"These roles are really important and their success will depend more on the calibre of the office holders than any final minor amendments to the legislation."

Lib Dem MPs plan to hold an emergency debate at their party conference but Tory advisers believe the issue needs to be wound up in early September.

Migration Into UK Rises 21% As Fewer Leave

Net migration into the UK rose by 21 per cent last year to 239,000 on the back of a significant fall in people leaving the country and a net increase in migrants from eastern Europe, according to the Office for National Statistics.















Uncontrolled immigration: Asylum seekers in Calais, hoping to settle in the UK instead of the continent.

The ONS estimates released on Thursday show that while long-term immigration to the UK was 575,000 in the year to December 2010 – only up slightly from 567,000 the year before – emigration was at a six-year low of 336,000 in the 12 months to December last year.

The figures will make grim reading for Theresa May, home secretary, who is working to fulfil the coalition’s manifesto pledge of reducing net migration to the tens of thousands by the end of this parliament. Ms May has repeatedly confirmed that she will meet this target, although annual net migration levels were around 150,000 when the Conservative party first made its promise.

One of the biggest hurdles for the Home Office is that net migration figures can be inflated by several factors beyond the government’s control, such as the recent decrease in emigration or an influx of migrants from within the European Union. The ONS statistics show that net migration from A8 countries – including Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia – increased nearly eightfold to 39,000 in the year to December 2010, from 5,000 the year before.

Responding to the latest data, immigration minister Damian Green pointed out that from the quarterly perspective, net migration had in fact stabilised given that the current 239,000 figure for the fourth quarter of 2010 is a minor shift down from 242,000 the previous quarter.

“After almost two years of increasing net migration the figures stabilised in the last quarter,” Mr Green said. He added that the statistics cover a period before the government’s “radical changes” to the immigration system, which started in April this year, had kicked in.

The changes include a cap on the number of migrants entering the UK to work from outside the EU and a crackdown on bogus educational institutions in an attempt to reduce the number of foreign students coming into the country.

Matt Cavanagh, associate director at the Institute for Public Policy Research, a think-tank, expressed doubts that the fledgling policies were working. The latest quarterly figures to June 2011 show a slight fall in entry for work, which is down 2.7 per cent, although this is offset by a rise in entry for study, which is up by 3.5 per cent.

“Politicians shouldn’t promise what they can’t deliver, particularly on immigration,” Mr Cavanagh said. “Before the election, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats said immigration was out of control; afterwards, they said they would cut it dramatically. Neither was true.”

But Sir Andrew Green, chairman of the campaign group Migration Watch UK, said the figures laid bare the “legacy” of the Labour government – although he added that the coalition would have to “face down some vested interests” in the business and education sectors if they were to reach the tens of thousands target.

The shadow Home Office minister, Shabana Mahmood, said the figures revealed the “gulf” between the government’s rhetoric on immigration and the reality in the official figures.

“The prime minister said ‘no ifs, no buts’ on immigration, but on the contrary, ‘ifs and buts’ sum up the government’s policies,” she said. “Cuts to the UK Border Agency forcing the loss of over 5,000 staff is making it harder not easier to enforce the rules we have.”

Home Office Meets Social Networks Over Blocking Plans

Home secretary Theresa May is meeting Twitter, Research In Motion and Facebook to discuss the feasibility of blocking access to social networks in times of social disorder.

The talks between the Home Office, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), police forces and the social-networking service providers on Thursday are dedicated to exploring technical measures to block access for individuals inciting violence. They follow the use of social networks by participants in widespread rioting around the UK at the beginning of August.










Home secretary Theresa May is meeting Twitter, RIM and Facebook to discuss social media's role in the recent UK riots.

"These discussions will help us determine how law enforcement and the networks can work better together," the Home Office said in a statement. "Amongst the issues to be discussed is whether and how we should be able to stop people communicating via these websites and services when we know they are plotting violence, disorder and criminality."

The Home Office declined to tell ZDNet UK whether it will discuss closing down social networks completely during disorder, but said that social networks are "a means of enabling criminals to communicate".

"We are working with the police to see what action can be taken to prevent access to those services by customers identified as perpetrators of disorder or other criminal action," a spokeswoman for the Home Office added.

Incitement

The BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) instant-messaging service was used by people to incite looting, according to The Guardian, and two men have been sentenced to four-year prison terms for using Facebook to encourage people to take part in the looting. In response, prime minister David Cameron told parliament the government is considering closing down social networks such as Twitter and Facebook during unrest.

The blocking of communication over social networks is typically associated with repressive regimes and has occurred during disturbances in Egypt, Bahrain and Libya, among other countries.

Twitter confirmed that its representative will attend the Home Office meeting, while Facebook is sending Richard Allan, its head of policy in Europe. During the disorder, Facebook said that it had "ensured any credible threats of violence [were] removed from Facebook."

RIM did not respond to a request to comment on the discussions, but said earlier in August it "continues to comply with both UK privacy laws as well as the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa)".

Civil liberties concerns

Ten civil liberties organisations, including Liberty and the Open Rights Group (ORG), sent a letter to home secretary May on Wednesday, saying that turning off, restricting or monitoring people's communications networks needed open, detailed deliberation.

"We are very concerned that new measures, made in good faith but in a heated political environment, will overextend powers in ways that would be susceptible to abuse, restrict legitimate, free communication and expression and undermine people's privacy," the groups said in the letter. "This is especially so if proposals involve unaccountable voluntary arrangements between law enforcement and communications providers."

The main danger with voluntary arrangements between service providers and the police is a lack of accountability through the courts, believes ORG executive director Jim Killock.

"Innocent people could well find their accounts suspended without legal recourse," Killock told ZDNet UK.

"More worrying is perhaps the effect on people engaged in political activity. Police could make a judgement that someone is breaking the law, while individuals think they are engaged in legitimate protest."

The Metropolitan Police's acting deputy commissioner Tim Godwin told the Home Affairs Committee last week that police had contemplated switching off Twitter but that "the legality of that is very questionable, and additionally it is also a very useful intelligence asset".

In addition, assistant commissioner Lynne Owens told the committee that police had monitored Twitter and BBM in real time. "There was intelligence that the Olympic sites, that both Westfields and Oxford Street were indeed going to be targeted," Owens said. "We were able to secure all those places and indeed there was no damage at any of them."