Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe today announced he is stepping down as Met Police Commissioner months before his contract expires.

Britain's most senior police officer will retire in February after a fractious start to his relationship with new Mayor Sadiq Khan.

Mr Khan expressed doubts over Sir Bernard's decision-making and suggested he wanted to pick his own Commissioner.

Sir Bernard's contract had been due to run out in September next year, but he announced today he would be stepping down seven months before that date.

The Mayor issued a luke-warm statement thanking Sir Bernard for his service and pledging to "work closely" with Home Secretary Amber Rudd to find a replacement.

Announcing his retirement, Sir Bernard said: "I am so proud of the remarkable men and women who serve Londoners as police officers and staff and make this such a safe place for people to live, work or visit.

"I want to thank all of them for what they do, and the risks they take each day to protect the public.

"I want to thank all the partners we work with in government, in City Hall and across London. And I want to thank the public for the support they show the Met, and have shown me personally, as we do our difficult jobs.

Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe 20 show all Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe 1/20 Standing down: Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is retiring after five years as Met Commissioner 2/20 Sir Bernard was made London's top cop in 2011 3/20 Sir Bernard thanked his police force, saying: "I want to thank all of them for what they do, and the risks they take each day to protect the public." 4/20 The commissioner said it had been a "great privilege" to carry out his role 5/20 Sir Bernard said: "It's the most rewarding of jobs to protect good people and lock up the bad guys." 6/20 The commissioner had been expected to stand down in September 2017, but will retire early 7/20 Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is Britain's most senior police officer 8/20 During the mayoral election campaign, Mr Khan hinted he may want to find a replacement for Sir Bernard 9/20 Doreen Lawrence, mother of murdered Stephen, meets Sir Bernard 10/20 In 2015, the BBC cameras were allowed to follow the force for a documentary called The Met: Policing London 11/20 New Mayor of London Sadiq Khan appears to have had a strained relationship with the outgoing chief 12/20 Sir Bernard helped deliver a safe and successful 2012 Olympics 13/20 The hunt is now on for Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe's replacement 14/20 Sir Bernard said: "It's the most rewarding of jobs to protect good people and lock up the bad guys." 15/20 Mr Khan thanked Sir Bernard for "his years of service and dedication to keeping Londoners safe" 16/20 Sir Bernard has overseen the Met's response to terrorism, including rolling out 600 heavily-armed officers 17/20 Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: "He has shown remarkable and consistent dedication to public service." 18/20 In the latter part of his tenure, Sir Bernard has faced questions about his force's handling of inquiries into historical abuse allegations. 19/20 One of his first major challenges in the job was leading the response to the London riots 20/20 Gone: Sir Bernard is leaving after five years 1/20 Standing down: Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is retiring after five years as Met Commissioner 2/20 Sir Bernard was made London's top cop in 2011 3/20 Sir Bernard thanked his police force, saying: "I want to thank all of them for what they do, and the risks they take each day to protect the public." 4/20 The commissioner said it had been a "great privilege" to carry out his role 5/20 Sir Bernard said: "It's the most rewarding of jobs to protect good people and lock up the bad guys." 6/20 The commissioner had been expected to stand down in September 2017, but will retire early 7/20 Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is Britain's most senior police officer 8/20 During the mayoral election campaign, Mr Khan hinted he may want to find a replacement for Sir Bernard 9/20 Doreen Lawrence, mother of murdered Stephen, meets Sir Bernard 10/20 In 2015, the BBC cameras were allowed to follow the force for a documentary called The Met: Policing London 11/20 New Mayor of London Sadiq Khan appears to have had a strained relationship with the outgoing chief 12/20 Sir Bernard helped deliver a safe and successful 2012 Olympics 13/20 The hunt is now on for Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe's replacement 14/20 Sir Bernard said: "It's the most rewarding of jobs to protect good people and lock up the bad guys." 15/20 Mr Khan thanked Sir Bernard for "his years of service and dedication to keeping Londoners safe" 16/20 Sir Bernard has overseen the Met's response to terrorism, including rolling out 600 heavily-armed officers 17/20 Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: "He has shown remarkable and consistent dedication to public service." 18/20 In the latter part of his tenure, Sir Bernard has faced questions about his force's handling of inquiries into historical abuse allegations. 19/20 One of his first major challenges in the job was leading the response to the London riots 20/20 Gone: Sir Bernard is leaving after five years

"I came into this job determined to fight crime and make the MPS the best, most professional police service. I wish my successor well as they take on this amazing responsibility.

"It has been a great privilege to be the Met's Commissioner. I have loved my time in the role and I have loved being a police officer.

"It's the most rewarding of jobs to protect good people and lock up the bad guys."

During the mayoral election campaign, Mr Khan hinted he may want to replace Sir Bernard, saying: "It’s for the Mayor of London to have a big say in who the commissioner of the Metropolitan police is."

And in September, Mr Khan publicly rebuked the Commissioner three times during the course of one meeting as tensions between the pair were exposed.

In the most recent clash between the pair, Mr Khan said he was disappointed not to have been consulted on plans - which were later scrapped - for the Met to start using "spit hoods" to restrain suspects.

He also distanced himself from the Met's show of strength after stabbings in Hyde Park when heavily armed counter-terror officers were put on display.

In a statement today, the Mayor said: "I would like to thank Bernard for his years of service and dedication to keeping Londoners safe - I have enjoyed working closely together with him over the past five months.

"Bernard oversaw the excellent policing of the 2012 Olympic Games and has taken big steps towards making our police service more representative of London.

"I will work closely with the Home Secretary to ensure we find the best possible candidate to appoint as the new Commissioner, so that we can continue to keep Londoners safe."

Home Secretary Amber Rudd added: "I want to thank Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe for the leadership he has shown as Commissioner, and his work to keep the communities of London safe and the United Kingdom secure against the backdrop of a heightened terror threat.

"Sir Bernard has had a long and distinguished career as a determined crimefighter and an inspirational senior officer. He has shown remarkable and consistent dedication to public service.

"Among his many achievements in London was the delivery of a safe and successful 2012 Olympics.

"I am grateful to Sir Bernard for his dedication and support, and look forward to working closely with him until his retirement next year."

Sir Bernard first joined the Met as Assistant Commissioner in July 2001 before eventually becoming the force’s chief in September 2011.

One of his first major challenges in the job was leading the response to the London riots, sparked by the police shooting of Mark Duggan in Tottenham.

Those riots saw London’s worst violence for years, with officers in some parts of the capital hugely outnumbered as shops and businesses were ransacked.

He also led the capital’s response to the threat posed by terrorism, including the launch of 600 new heavily-armed officers on to London’s streets last month.

And as commissioner he was also tasked with policing London’s hugely successful 2012 Olympic Games.

In the latter part of his tenure, Sir Bernard has faced questions about his force's handling of inquiries into historical abuse allegations.

The Met was engulfed in a storm of controversy over Operation Midland, its doomed investigation into VIP paedophile claims.

That 16-month probe was launched after claims that boys were sexually abused by public figures more than 30 years ago - but it closed in March without a single arrest.

Sir Bernard called in a former High Court judge to examine the handling of a number of investigations involving historical abuse claims, with the report expected to be submitted in the coming weeks.