“It’s sort of, it’s crazy. The investigation needs to take place – not all of those cases will have a case to answer, but many of them will.”

He continued: “We’ve got some officers who we sacked, but other legal bodies, who have a power to reinstate them, did. So, I’ve got officers who we determined shouldn’t be police officers and yet I have to keep them. It sounds bizarre – I’m the commissioner, yet I can’t decide who my own workforce is.”

This is of course particularly troubling in light of the case of Sarah Everard, who was kidnapped, raped and murdered by a serving Met officer, Wayne Couzens. Couzens, who used his warrant card and handcuffs to lure Everard into his car, was reportedly nicknamed ‘The Rapist’ by his colleagues.

Rowley’s recent comments come after he announced sweeping plans for reform in the Met earlier this week.

Speaking during an appearance at the Institute of Engineering and Technology in Westminster on Tuesday evening, Rowley revealed that he had been working on a plan for reform over the last four months and said a draft version would be published in “the next few days”.

Metropolitan police chief says it’s “crazy” that he can’t sack officers who break the law