Police officer lied about passing his driving test

The officer (not pictured) claimed to have passed his test in 2017 but checks found he only held a provisional licence

A former police officer told bosses he had passed his driving test when he had not, a misconduct panel found.

PC Alexander Simpson, who has since left Hertfordshire Police, reportedly told his supervisors that he had passed his driving test in 2017 and was able to drive automatic vehicles.

In 2024 he could not complete a "check drive" with the police driving school after he failed to provide a copy of his driving licence

A police misconduct panel found that Mr Simpson's actions amounted to gross misconduct and would have led to his dismissal had he still been employed by the force.

'Cannot be justified'

During the "check drive", Mr Simpson provided a photo of a document and not his licence, according to Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It was later discovered after record checks that he held a provisional driving licence.

Andy Prophet, the chief constable at Hertfordshire Police, said: "I find that on the balance of probabilities former PC Simpson did not hold a valid full driving licence, did mislead his supervisory officers and therefore failed to uphold the highest standards of professional behaviour expected of a police officer.

"The consequence of such behaviour only serves to undermine public trust and confidence and therefore cannot be justified."

Mr Simpson's details have been added to the College of Policing barred list.