Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley calls for urgent policing reform

Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police commissioner, warned on Friday that England and Wales’ policing system is “heading for failure” unless it is overhauled, and he outlined a plan to replace the 43 existing forces with a three‑tier structure that includes regional forces and a new National Police Service.

The call comes as crime has become more sophisticated and cross‑border. Organized‑crime gangs, fraud networks, cyber‑criminals and online child‑abuse rings now operate across regions and continents, while police remain split into local jurisdictions that were largely set up in the 1960s. Earlier this year senior officers had backed a national service and larger regional forces, and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s white paper reflected those ideas. The political landscape shifted in July when Andy Burnham became prime minister, and the police leadership now fears the new government may not support the reforms.

Rowley’s proposal would create eight to ten regional police forces, each supported by hundreds of local policing commands, and a National Police Service to tackle the most serious crimes. He argues that merging forces would cut duplication and free thousands of officers for front‑line duties. Funding adds urgency: police budgets have fallen from 0.9 % of GDP to 0.7 % while defence spending has risen, shrinking the slice of public money devoted to community safety. Rowley cited a case where a child was groomed by a predator on another continent to illustrate the mismatch between local victims and distant threats.

The next steps hinge on political backing. The Home Secretary has asked former Met commissioner Lord Hogan‑Howe to review force boundaries, but Burnham has not yet spoken publicly on the issue. Police chiefs are pressing for swift action, warning that inaction could worsen the “everyday crime epidemic” and further strain courts. If the reforms pass, they would represent the biggest restructuring of British policing since the 1960s and could reshape how resources are allocated to combat modern criminal threats.