Eighty staff responsible for guarding royal family, political leaders and public events have been disciplined for misconduct

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Eighty elite police officers and staff responsible for guarding the royal family, political leaders and public events in London have been disciplined for misconduct since 2010, the Guardian has learned.

The vast majority – 60 – of those reprimanded were attached to Scotland Yard’s diplomatic protection group, the unit that came under the spotlight over the Plebgate saga.

That highly trained squad, SO6, is to be overhauled this year following concerns raised by Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley that unacceptable “pockets of behaviour” had developed over many years.

It can now be revealed that SO6 – whose armed officers guard Downing Street and other top politicians in London – has faced dozens of disciplinary investigations since 2010.

Fifty-four SO6 officers and six staff were disciplined for misconduct since 2010, according to Scotland Yard figures obtained by the Guardian under the Freedom of Information Act.

The vast majority of the offences, which ranged from general failure in duty, to assault and traffic irregularities, resulted in written warnings, with only a handful of dismissals.

Four diplomatic protection officers were sacked last year for their role in the Plebgate affair at the Downing Street gates on 19 September 2012.

There have been calls for the Metropolitan police to reinstate PC James Glanville, PC Susan Johnson and PC Gillian Weatherley following the high court ruling in November that former cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell probably did call police officers “plebs” during the confrontation with SO6 officers. Three other unnamed diplomatic protection officers were disciplined following misconduct hearings over Plebgate.

Concerns over the Met’s protection squads were raised again in October when a firearms-trained officer responsible for guarding the royal family was arrested after ammunition was discovered in police lockers in Buckingham Palace.

The FoI figures show that 12 officers and staff from the royal protection unit, SO14, have been disciplined for misconduct since 2010. A further eight officers from SO1, the unit that guards David Cameron and other top ministers, were reprimanded in the same period.

The string of misconduct concerns prompted Scotland Yard chiefs to announce the overhaul of protection squads. In October Rowley said having officers stay in the same role for years could lead to a “separate culture developing”.

As part of the reforms, SO6 will in April be merged with SO17, the team protecting the Palace of Westminster, and SO1 will be brought into SO14 – resulting in two protection squads instead of four.

Scotland Yard was forced to review its security arrangements for the prime minister in October when a jogger was able to run past SO1 officers and within inches of the prime minister on a visit to Leeds.

Previously the Met has been embarrassed by allegations that officers at Buckingham Palace stole items confiscated from the visiting public. This is currently under investigation.

The Met said: “It is important to note that the number of allegations is an extremely small proportion of the total number of officers and staff in the MPS which is over 48,000. The vast majority of our officers and staff carry out their service to Londoners in the manner the MPS and the public expects.

“The MPS is committed to delivering a professional service of the highest standard to the public and expects its employees to conduct themselves professionally, ethically and with the utmost integrity at all times. Any instance where the conduct of our staff brings the MPS into disrepute is treated extremely seriously by the MPS.”