Met chief warns policing 'heading for failure' without reform

The head of the Metropolitan Police is to warn that policing in England and Wales is "heading for failure" without urgent reform. In a speech on Friday, Sir Mark Rowley will call for the system to change, arguing it is unable to cope with the sophistication of modern criminals.

He is proposing eight to 10 regional police forces, supported by hundreds of local policing commands and a new National Police Service, in what would be the biggest overhaul since the 1960s. The changes would replace the 43-force structure with three tiers: local teams dealing with neighbourhood issues, regional forces sharing specialist resources and a National Police Service tackling the most serious crimes.

Sir Mark says organised crime groups, fraud networks, cyber-criminals and those involved in online child abuse increasingly operate across regional and international borders, while police forces remain organised around local areas.