Scotland police chief rules himself out of Met job

Police Scotland said Iain Livingstone was committed to serving the people of Scotland

Scotland's Chief Constable Iain Livingstone has ruled himself out of applying for the top job at the Met following the departure of Cressida Dick.

Dame Cressida resigned from her job as commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in February.

Mr Livingstone is understood to be among a number of senior officers asked to apply for the role.

However, Police Scotland confirmed he would not be putting himself forward.

A spokesman said: "The chief constable is committed to serving the people of Scotland and is not applying to become the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police."

Applications for the vacant post closed on Wednesday.

• Met Police problems not just a 'few bad apples'

• The crises and controversies of Cressida Dick

• From early retirement to chief constable

Mr Livingstone impressed Home Secretary Priti Patel with the way he tackled public order at COP26 in Glasgow, according to a report in The Times.

He became chief constable of Police Scotland in 2018 after temporarily stepping up to replace Phil Gormley, who had been placed on special leave amid allegations of bullying, which he denied.

Mr Livingstone had been preparing to take early retirement when he agreed to step in to replace Mr Gormley.

He had been a deputy chief constable since Police Scotland was formed in 2013, having previously served with the Lothian and Borders force, where he was head of CID.

Dame Cressida Dick resigned as commissioner earlier this year

Dame Cressida, the first woman to lead the Met - the UK's biggest police force - said she had to resign from her role after London's mayor Sadiq Khan, made it clear to her he had no confidence in her leadership.

It followed cases of sexism and misogyny among some Met officers.

Dame Cressida also faced criticism over the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving officer and a series of other scandals.

Following her departure last month, Sir Stephen House has been acting commissioner. He was previously Police Scotland's chief constable - in charge of policing when Scotland's eight regional forces merged in 2015.

He stood down in 2015, following controversy over the deaths of John Yuill and Lamara Bell, who lay for three days undiscovered following a car crash on the M9 motorway.

The crash had been reported to police but officers later admitted it had not been followed up.

Sir Stephen was appointed deputy commissioner of the Met in 2018.