Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe ‘jumped before he was pushed’ with outgoing Met Police boss set to bag £9m pension pot
Scotland Yard chief steps down over 'unbearable tensions' with new London Mayor Sadiq Khan
OUTGOING Metropolitan Police boss Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe quit before he was pushed, say insiders — and walked away with a pension pot worth £9million.
The Scotland Yard Commissioner will step down seven months before the end of his contract over “unbearable tensions” with new London Mayor Sadiq Khan, sources said last night.
His £9million gold-plated pension will give him an annual taxpayer-funded income of £181,500 a year.
Details of his final payday emerged as sources said Sir Bernard had announced his “retirement” because he feared he would get the bullet.
The Met is expecting heavy criticism from a judge-led review into the disastrous Operation Midland historic child sex probe, due to be published in the coming days.
Sir Bernard, 58, who will leave in February, is due to meet its author Sir Richard Henriques next week.
Meanwhile, insiders say his relations with Mayor Khan’s staff have become increasingly fractious.
Khan’s team were said to be furious they were not consulted before the Met announced it would start to use spit hoods.
After discussing his future with wife Marion, 52, Sir Bernard is said to have decided it was the right time to walk away.
A source told The Sun: “It was not a cordial relationship with Khan’s team.
“They weren’t suited to each other and with a new Home Secretary in place as well, he just felt it was time to move on.
“This way it’s his decision. He’s jumping before he got pushed.”
Yesterday the Mayor denied the pair had fallen out, insisting: “That isn’t true. I didn’t want him to go, we worked incredibly well together.”
And Hogan-Howe told reporters he was not worried he was about to be forced out.
PROCTOR: HE WAS A DISASTER
FORMER Tory MP Harvey Proctor blasted Sir Bernard last night over the shambolic Operation Midland into sex abuse.
Mr Proctor lost his home and job before he was cleared.
He said: “His time at the Met will be regarded to be horrendous for himself and for the Met.
“He defended the indefensible for nearly a year.
“The reality had to be dragged out of him.
“He should have had the courage to say they were wrong earlier.
“He was basking in the reflected glory of having a major scandal on their hands.”
He said: “Not at all, it could have happened any time over the next two years.
“It just seemed a good chance to make this change and make sure we allowed a decent time to select my successor.”
Hogan-Howe, knighted in 2013, has been in the post since 2011.
He had desperately wanted to stay until 2018, equalling Sir Paul Condon’s seven years, making him the joint longest-serving Met chief in recent history.
But in January then-Home Secretary Theresa May gave his contract an extension of only 12 months, to September 2017.
Yesterday the new PM said he had “done an excellent job”.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd called Sir Bernard “a determined and inspirational senior officer”.
But his reign will be remembered for a string of costly, high-profile botched operations.
Some £2.5million went on Operation Midland, which centred on the Dolphin Square flats in Pimlico, South West London, and on claims three boys had been murdered by VIP paedophiles.
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It was sparked by a single witness, “Nick”, whose far-fetched account was branded “credible and true” by one of Sir Bernard’s top officers.
Among those quizzed were former armed forces chief Lord Bramall, now 92, the late ex-Home Secretary Lord Brittan and ex-Tory MP Harvey Proctor, 69.
All three denied the allegations and Midland hit the buffers, yet the Met failed to tell Lord Brittan he was in the clear before he died.
Plebgate probe Operation Alice grew from looking at MP Andrew Mitchell’s outburst at Downing Street cops into a sprawling inquiry to find out who told The Sun what he had said.
Anti-terror laws were used to hack the phone records of three Sun reporters, analyse the newspaper’s call data and pull exchanges linked to two landlines.
The tactics were slammed by human rights groups.
And £14.2million went on the failed Operation Elveden investigation into Sun reporters and sources.
After a five-year probe, one journalist out of 27 was convicted.
A Court of Appeal hearing into his conviction starts next week.
In June 2015 a poll of 47,000 Met staff showed only one in five had confidence in Sir Bernard’s leadership.
In the past year, four of his most senior cops have been investigated, including close aide Assistant Commissioner Patricia Gallan, who was reported for allegedly bullying a colleague.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Maxine De Brunner was allowed to resign while facing a misconduct charge over claims she arranged for officers to entertain kids at her son’s private school.
Despite these failures, Sir Bernard’s 38 years of service will see him collect £181,500 every year — or £150,000 if he takes a £408,000 tax-free lump sum.
A Brit retiring at 58 and wanting that income would need a pension pot of £8,992,601.02, according to experts at Hargreaves Lansdown.
The average pot size in England is £91,175.
Harvey Proctor said: “Hogan-Howe is going to take a barrel load of pension money leaving a trail of damage and havoc behind him.”
First woman boss at Yard?
THE Met may get its first female chief as three women are thought to head a weak shortlist.
The winner will be chosen by Home Secretary Amber Rudd and Mayor Sadiq Khan. We profile the favourites.
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