I am afraid I am not going to join the echo chamber of welcomes (including from Dominic Grieve and David Davis) for this inquiry by Commander Ian Johnston into the Met's handling of the Damian Green case.
Ian Johnston was until recently an Assistant Commissioner in the Met and is a senior member of ACPO, the body which yesterday issued a public statement saying it had all been very well handled by the Met. ACPO have a reputation of sticking by their own. I hope I am proven wrong, but this bears all the hallmarks of a complete whitewash.
26 comments:
http://therantingkingpenguin.blogspot.com/2008/12/whitehall-farce.html
Also, I am chuffed to say, available at Old Holborn's place.
The Penguin
Well you have to look at who called Johnston in, don't you. Is this possibly to forestall the arrival of someone else who might be a little more scrupulous, incisive and independent?
Why are members of ACPO investigating themselves?
Bring in Ms Shoesmith - you would have a better chance at being thorough.
Of course it will be a whitewash! I bet most of the details will be kept out of the public domain with the 'national security' or similar nonsensical excuse/reason.
Hah!- the usual nonsense then!
Who investigates the police that are investigating the police?
Are we supposed to bow down and say Hallelujah - all will be OK now.
Of course not. It's akin to a freemason asking another freemason for a bit of help. It won't for one minute help the situation and is a pointless exercise.
I find it both worrying and amusing!
These socialists, (who for their long years in opposition, made quite violent their lack of trust in Police Investigating Police, to the effect that the Police Complaints Borad and Police Complaints Authority were not good enough so they, in Government brought in the Police Complaints Commission!) are happy with the former Met Man, Johnston - is called in to investigate his acpo colleagues......
As a former police officer I am quite disheartened by all this. They should have asked the PCA to oversee this investigation.
It all adds up to yet another 'pull the wool over the eyes of the people' job.
Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Sounds like standard smokescreen tactics to me.
This now lets the final news cycle before the Queen's Speech be dominated by the apparently reassuring news that 'an enquiry is taking place'.
The next steps:
They can now claim that they can't comment because that would prejudice the ongoing enquiry and the terms of it will be extremely limited (and certainly not touching upon what Ministers did or didn't know).
I don't know why everyone has such faith in this government's (or the Police's) 'enquiries,' only today we have learnt that the jury at the inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes will not be able to consider a verdict of unlawful killing. Hands tied behind their back before they start to deliberate.
Apparently the Home Secretary was advised of this review when she met with the Police to ensure that all was being dealt with appropriately.
The Police announce their own enquiry, which will later be relied upon by the PM as all that is required, provided a few soft lessons to be learnt are in it.
A bit like the PM was happy for Ms Shoesmith to investigate her own department - only forced into an independent review following his slur on Cameron at PMQ's about his call being politically motivated.
I wonder if this guys promotion changes depend on the home secretary?
Whitewash, with primer and undercoat plus a nice Artex finish.
Richard Holloway said..
"They can now claim that they can't comment because that would prejudice the ongoing enquiry and the terms of it will be extremely limited (and certainly not touching upon what Ministers did or didn't know)."
I couldn't have put it better myself.
Mrs S.
Talking of inquiries and the long grass, what happened to Lord Whitty's inquiry into the dogdy donations from Abrahams? Set up a year ago or more, but no sign of a report.
So lets get this right
you work for the Government go for a job with a conservative MP...instead leak documents to an opposition MP
get caught...claim democratic right and that you are a whistleblower
on the other hand
you work for a council leak documents to a opposition councillor about massive cuts and closurers and your sacked
look forward to all those whistleblowers being reinstated and leaks being accepted as part of our democratic right
sorry did I miss something
Of course it will be a whitewash.
This government must be the most venal and despicable ever, even including the days of the Rotten Boroughs.
Neither Cameron, Grieve, Davis nor anyone else will be able to nail Brown or anyone else. They are so unscrupulous and dishonest it will be like trying to nail jelly to a wall.
The Tories must concentrate entirely on throwing them out.
The only hope is that there is a Labour back bench revolt. Oh, sorry, oxymoron of the week.
Didn't the socialists bring in some sort of "whistleblower's charter" when they first got into office. Something about protecting "honest and conscientious" public servants revealling the dirty laundry of unscrupulous government?
This government must be the most venal and despicable ever
You must be very very young.
Remittance Man,
Broadly yes (technically a priivate members bill put passed w/ Govt. support).
Some politicians do support civil liberties even after they get into government.
I have just received a new statement from Ms Smith, UberGauleiter of ze Home Offizieren.
"I can quite understand that the police have requested that everyone in future must visit a police station to ask who to vote for in elections. This is in line with our new Von Labour initiative "Voting Made Easy", which is fully approved by up to 99% of all MPs who I asked in the lobby the other day. It would be Stalinist of me in the extreme to interfere with the police in the execution of this important duty and frankly of anyone who doesn't do exactly as I, er, they, say. Is that quite clear?"
Citizens wishing to vote for Von Labour may attend their local Geheim Stats Polizei Offizieren from 9-5 Monday to Saturday, bring your new Asda/IBM/Von Labour/Shutzstaffel ID card and stand to attention in the foyer.
(ps. Reichseiter Smith who issued this notice is now under arrest for refusing to salute the Supreme Leader in a public place. However, you must still obey the edict. Or else. Signed P Mandyson, Minister of Interiors, House of Commons Manager.)
(pps. Anyone reading this notice is committing an offence and may be raided by the anti-terror police.)
Jimmy
I am very, very old.
http://www.acpo.police.uk/about.html
'The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) is not a staff association (the separately constituted Chief Police Officers' Association fulfils that function). ACPO's work is on behalf of the Service, rather than its own members.
The Association has the status of a private company limited by guarantee. As such, it conforms to the requirements of company law and its affairs are governed by a Board of Directors.
It is funded by a combination of a Home Office grant, contributions from each of the 44 Police Authorities, membership subscriptions and by the proceeds of its annual exhibition.
ACPO's members are police officers who hold the rank of Chief Constable, Deputy Chief Constable or Assistant Chief Constable, or their equivalents, in the forty four forces of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, national police
agencies and certain other forces in the UK, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, and certain senior non-police staff. There are presently 280 members of ACPO.'
A private company limited by guarantee.
...its affairs are governed by a Board of Directors.
Perhaps someone with a better knowledge of how to find out these things could enumerate and elucidate on the number and type of contracts entered into by a private company working 'on behalf of the Service'.
As Iain said: 'Ian Johnston was until recently an Assistant Commissioner in the Met and is a senior member of ACPO,
the body which yesterday issued a public statement saying it had all been very well handled by the Met. ACPO have a reputation of sticking by their own.'
By their own shareholders?
Or just 'sticking by their own?
Google 'definition of ACPO Service' and then ask who is working for whom?
STB.
p.s. Can we now refer to 'it' as Moses Mandelson?
pps wv Unesse!
Nope, buckets of whitewash being stockpiled. OF course it will be a stitch up.
>>Tim said...sorry did I miss something ?<<
Apparently so.
Just who has been arguing that civil servants should not be subject to disciplinary proceeding for leaking ?
Do tell.
If you cannot grasp even the basic issues at stake, then you are either deliberately obtuse, or stupid.
Jimmy,
So did it enter the statute books or was it just a motion passed by the house?
Not that it really matters, maybe we should do some delving and see which of the NuLab types now in Cabinet (Smith, Straw Brown) voted for it.
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