View source for Cressida Dick

{{short description|Former Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in London (born 1960)}}
{{EngvarB|date=May 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = 
| honorific-suffix    = {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|DBE|QPM|size=100%}}
| name                = Dame Cressida Dick
| image               = Cressida Dick 2017 (cropped).jpg
| alt                 = 
| smallimage          = <!--If this is specified, "image" should not be.-->
| caption             = Cressida Dick in 2017
| office              = [[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]
| term_start          = 10 April 2017
| term_end            = 10 April 2022
| monarch             = [[Elizabeth II]]
| deputy              = {{ubl|[[Craig Mackey|Sir Craig Mackey]]|[[Steve House (police officer)|Sir Stephen House]]}}
| 1blankname          = [[Home Secretary]]
| 1namedata           = {{ubl|[[Amber Rudd]]|[[Sajid Javid]]|[[Priti Patel]]}}
| predecessor         = [[Bernard Hogan-Howe, Baron Hogan-Howe|Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe]]
| successor           = [[Mark Rowley|Sir Mark Rowley]]{{efn|[[Stephen House]] acted from 10 April 2022 to 12 September 2022}}
| office1             = [[Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]] for [[Specialist Operations]]
| term_start1         = 18 July 2011
| term_end1           = 1 January 2015
| predecessor1        = [[John Yates (police officer)|John Yates]]
| successor1          = [[Mark Rowley]]
| office2             = [[Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]
| termlabel2          = Acting
| term_start2         = 8 November 2011
| term_end2           = 23 January 2012
| predecessor2        = [[Tim Godwin]]
| successor2          = [[Craig Mackey]]
| birthname           = Cressida Rose Dick
| birth_date          = {{birth date and age|1960|10|16|df=y}}
| birth_place         = [[Oxford]], England
| spouse              = 
| relations           = 
| children            = 
| residence           = 
| alma_mater          = {{ubl|[[Balliol College, Oxford]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])|[[Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge]] ([[Master of Studies|MSt]])}}
| occupation          = 
| profession          = Police officer
| signature           = 
| signature_alt       = 
| 2blankname          = [[Mayor of London|Mayor]]
| 2namedata           = [[Sadiq Khan]]
}}
'''Dame Cressida Rose Dick''' {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|DBE|QPM}} (born 16 October 1960)<ref name=Wit>{{cite news |last=Dodd |first=Vikram |date=8 April 2017 |title=Cressida Dick: the Met's new commissioner needs her wits about her |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/apr/08/cressida-dick-met-commissioner-first-woman |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=4 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170604012438/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/apr/08/cressida-dick-met-commissioner-first-woman |url-status=live }}</ref> is a British former [[police officer]] who served as [[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]] from 2017 to 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|author=Kara Fox|title=London Metropolitan Police chief resigns|url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/10/uk/london-police-commissioner-gbr-uk-intl/index.html|access-date=2022-02-10|website=CNN|date=10 February 2022 }}</ref><ref name=bbcdick/> She is both the first female and the first openly homosexual officer to lead the [[Metropolitan Police Service]] (MPS; or "the Met").

Dick joined the MPS in 1983. From 1995 to 2000, she was a high-ranking officer in the [[Thames Valley Police]]. After earning a [[master's degree]] in [[criminology]], she returned to the Met in 2001, and subsequently held senior roles in the force's diversity directorate, in anti-gang and anti-gun crime operations, and in [[counterterrorism]] operations. In June 2009 she was promoted to the rank of assistant commissioner, the first woman to hold this rank substantively. She briefly served as acting deputy commissioner in late 2011 and 2012 during a vacancy in the office. She oversaw the Met's security preparations for the [[Security for the 2012 Summer Olympics|security operations for the 2012 London Olympics]]. Dick retired from the Met in 2015 to accept a role in the [[Foreign Office]], but returned in 2017 on being selected by the [[Home Office]] to succeed [[Bernard Hogan-Howe]] as MPS Commissioner, becoming the first woman to hold this post.

Dick's career has included several significant crises and controversies,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/03/14/dame-cressida-dicks-career-has-defined-controversy/|title=Dame Cressida Dick's career has been defined by controversy|last=Evans|first=Martin|date=14 March 2021|work=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=15 March 2021|archive-date=15 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315160725/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/03/14/dame-cressida-dicks-career-has-defined-controversy/|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as a series of career comebacks.<ref name=ConfidenceFalling>{{cite news |first=Vikram |last=Dodd |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/14/cressida-dick-stresses-her-identity-as-a-woman-as-she-takes-on-her-armchair-critics |title=With confidence in the Met falling, could this be the end for comeback Cressida? |work=The Guardian |date=14 March 2021 |access-date=15 March 2021 |archive-date=15 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315070550/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/14/cressida-dick-stresses-her-identity-as-a-woman-as-she-takes-on-her-armchair-critics |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2005, she headed the operation which led to the [[Death of Jean Charles de Menezes|fatal shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes]]. A subsequent review faulted the MPS for lapses, but Dick was cleared of personal blame in a trial in 2007. As commissioner she oversaw a service affected by cuts to police budgets and staffing levels. Controversial aspects of Dick's tenure include the Met's use of [[stop and search|stop-and-search]] tactics, the handling of recommendations made after the botched [[Operation Midland]], and arrests of attendees at a candlelight vigil for [[Sarah Everard]] and complaints by the [[Daniel Morgan Independent Panel]] that she obstructed their inquiry into police corruption in 2021.<ref name=vikram1/><ref name=vikram2>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/16/cressida-dick-could-face-investigation-over-daniel-morgan-case |work=The Guardian |first=Vikram |last=Dodd |date=16 June 2021 |title=Cressida Dick could face investigation over Daniel Morgan case |access-date=18 June 2021 |archive-date=19 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619020230/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/16/cressida-dick-could-face-investigation-over-daniel-morgan-case |url-status=live }}</ref> 

On 10 February 2022 Dick announced she would be leaving the role after losing the confidence of [[Sadiq Khan]], the [[Mayor of London]], over her response to [[Racism in the United Kingdom|racism]] and [[misogyny]] in the force.<ref name = bbcdick >{{Cite news|date=2022-02-10|title=Cressida Dick to step down as Metropolitan Police chief|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-60340525|access-date=2022-02-10|archive-date=10 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210200747/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-60340525|url-status=live}}</ref> Dick left office on 10 April 2022.<ref name = leavedate >{{cite news | url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-60965795 | title = Cressida Dick: Met police chief announces leaving date | date = 2 April 2022 | access-date = 2 April 2022 | newspaper = BBC News}}</ref> In January 2023 it was revealed that part of the reason for Dick's ousting was the Met's handling of the case of the serial rapist [[David Carrick (serial rapist)|David Carrick]], a Met police officer.<ref name = carrickscandal >{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/16/metropolitan-police-officer-david-carrick-revealed-as-serial-rapist | title = Elite Metropolitan police officer David Carrick revealed as serial rapist | date = 16 January 2023 | access-date = 16 January 2023 | newspaper = The Guardian}}</ref>

== Early life ==
Dick was born on 16 October 1960 in [[Oxford]], where she was brought up.<ref name=Wit/><ref>{{cite news |date=10 February 2022 |title=Cressida Dick steps down as Met Police Commissioner |url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/19916012.cressida-dick-steps-met-police-commissioner/ |newspaper=[[Oxford Mail]] |access-date=11 February 2022}}</ref> She is the third and youngest child of Marcus William Dick (1920–1971),<ref name="Building 1975, p. 248">Building: Letters 1960–1975, Isaiah Berlin, Penguin Books, 2016, p. 248</ref> Senior Tutor at [[Balliol College, Oxford]],<ref>{{cite web |last=Jones |first=John |date=April 1999 |url=http://archives.balliol.ox.ac.uk/Past%20members/memorials.asp |title=Memorial inscriptions |publisher=[[Balliol College, Oxford]] |access-date=15 June 2012 |archive-date=12 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612141055/http://archives.balliol.ox.ac.uk/Past%20members/memorials.asp |url-status=live }}</ref> and Professor of Philosophy at the [[University of East Anglia]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Sanderson |first=Michael |year=2002 |title=The History of the University of East Anglia, Norwich |publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group|Hambledon and London]] |location=London |isbn=1-85285-336-0}}</ref> and Cecilia Rachel Dick (née Buxton, 1927–1995),<ref name="Building 1975, p. 248"/> a [[University of Oxford]] historian, daughter of Wing Commander Denis Alfred Jex Buxton, granddaughter of the banker and politician [[Alfred Fowell Buxton]], and great-granddaughter of [[Thomas Jex-Blake]], headmaster of [[Rugby School]].<ref>Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th ed., vol. 1, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 2003, pp. 500, 622</ref>

Dick was educated at the [[Dragon School]]<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph>{{cite news |last1=Evans |first1=Martin |title=Cressida Dick – A profile of Scotland Yard's first female Commissioner |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/02/22/cressida-dick-profile-scotland-yards-first-female-commissioner/ |work=Daily Telegraph |date=22 February 2017 |access-date=14 March 2021 |archive-date=14 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314084847/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/02/22/cressida-dick-profile-scotland-yards-first-female-commissioner/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Oxford High School, Oxford|Oxford High School]],<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://oxfordhigh.gdst.net/pioneer/cressida-dick/|title=Pioneer: Cressida Dick|publisher=Oxford High School website|access-date=15 March 2021|archive-date=11 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411011221/https://oxfordhigh.gdst.net/pioneer/cressida-dick/|url-status=live}}</ref> then in 1979 she was admitted to [[Balliol College, Oxford]] where she took a [[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] in Agriculture and Forest Sciences.<ref>{{cite web|website=Balliol College website|url=https://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/news/2017/february/first-female-head-of-the-metropolitan-police|title=First female head of the Metropolitan Police|date=23 February 2017|publisher=Balliol College, University of Oxford|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170413095723/https://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/news/2017/february/first-female-head-of-the-metropolitan-police|archive-date=13 April 2017}}</ref> While at Oxford, Dick was a [[wicketkeeper]] on a cricket team.<ref name=Wit /> 

Before joining the police, Dick worked briefly in a large accountancy firm.<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> Some years later, she took a course in [[criminology]] at [[Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge]], gaining a [[Master of Studies]] degree in 2000<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |last=Wynter-Vincent |first=Naomi |url=http://www.fitz.cam.ac.uk/mi-client/media/import/documents/Optima2.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716205843/http://www.fitz.cam.ac.uk/mi-client/media/import/documents/Optima2.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=16 July 2012 |title=Fitzwilliam Women's Dinner |journal=Optima |year=2002 |issue=2 |page=16|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |access-date=25 April 2008}}</ref> and graduating at the top of her class.<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /> 

== Police career ==
In 1983, Dick joined the Metropolitan Police as a [[Constable#United Kingdom|constable]],<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> patrolling a beat in the [[West End of London]].<ref name=31YearsLeaves>{{cite news |last=Halliday |first=Josh |date=1 December 2014 |title=Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick to leave Met Police |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/dec/01/cressida-dick-leaves-metropolitan-police-terrorism |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=4 August 2015 |archive-date=24 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150624102008/http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/dec/01/cressida-dick-leaves-metropolitan-police-terrorism |url-status=live }}</ref> Within a decade she had been promoted to [[chief inspector]].<ref name=31YearsLeaves /> In 1995, she transferred to [[Thames Valley Police]],<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /><ref name=Muir>Hugh Muir, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/sep/15/menezes.ukcrime 'If she felt she had made a huge mistake she would have said so and she would not have sought to move forward'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412183204/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/sep/15/menezes.ukcrime |date=12 April 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (15 September 2006).</ref> where she was initially a superintendent and then chief superintendent and area commander for [[Oxford]].<ref name=Muir />

She returned to the MPS in 2001 as a [[Commander#British police rank|commander]] and head of the diversity directorate.<ref name=Muir /> In 2003, she became the head of [[Operation Trident (Metropolitan Police)|Operation Trident]],<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /> which then numbered 300 officers.<ref name=John>Cindi John, [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/3756944.stm The force behind Operation Trident] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411033850/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/3756944.stm |date=11 April 2021 }}, BBC News (19 October 2004).</ref> Operation Trident investigates gang- and gun-related crime;<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /><ref name=John /> as head of the unit, Dick was credited with progress in reducing crime among "[[Yardie]]" [[Gangs in the United Kingdom|drug gangs]].<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph />

Dick was commander of [[Operation Kratos]], and in the immediate aftermath of [[21 July 2005 London bombings]], she was the [[Gold–silver–bronze command structure|gold commander]]<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /> in the control room during the operation which led to [[Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes|the police fatally shooting Jean Charles de Menezes]], an innocent Brazilian man who had been wrongly identified as a potential suicide bomber.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Edwards |first1=Richard |last2=Rayner |first2=Gordon |date=12 December 2008 |title=Jean Charles de Menezes inquest: Jury reaches open verdict |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/3708063/Jean-Charles-de-Menezes-inquest-Jury-reaches-open-verdict.html |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |access-date=20 April 2017 |archive-date=24 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624072014/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/3708063/Jean-Charles-de-Menezes-inquest-Jury-reaches-open-verdict.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> In a 2008 statement to the inquest investigating de Menezes's death, Dick expressed deep personal regret over de Menezes' death,<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /> and said, "If you ask me whether I think anybody did anything wrong or unreasonable on the operation, I don't think they did."<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> The inquest jury recorded an [[open verdict]].<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> In a separate trial, the Met was found to have committed catastrophic errors that had led to de Menezes's death, but Dick was cleared of any "personal culpability" for the tragedy.<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /><ref name=DickLeave>[https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-30277353 Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick to leave Met Police] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412183205/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-30277353 |date=12 April 2021 }}, BBC News (1 December 2014).</ref> The affair nevertheless almost derailed Dick's career.<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph /><ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> In 2019, Dick said, "The events of that day stay with one; I think about it quite often. It was a traumatic period. It was an awful time for so many people, obviously and most of all Jean Charles's family, the people who were there when it happened, the [[firearms officer]]s, the surveillance officers."<ref>Mark Townsend, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/10/cressida-dick-de-menezes-shooting-met-police-desert-island-discs-radio-4 Cressida Dick says death of Jean Charles de Menezes stayed with her] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108003558/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/10/cressida-dick-de-menezes-shooting-met-police-desert-island-discs-radio-4 |date=8 November 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'' (10 February 2019).</ref> De Menezes's family opposed Dick's later appointment as Met commissioner.<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph />

In 2006, the [[Metropolitan Police Authority]] (led by [[Len Duvall]]) promoted her to Deputy Assistant Commissioner Security and Protection.<ref name=2008BBCProfile>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4163774.stm Profile: Commander Cressida Dick] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128212750/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4163774.stm |date=28 January 2021 }}, BBC News (6 October 2008).</ref> In 2009, the Metropolitan Police Authority promoted her to [[Assistant Commissioner Specialist Crime]], in charge of the [[Specialist Crime Directorate (Metropolitan Police)|Specialist Crime Directorate]].<ref>{{cite press release |date=30 June 2009 |url=http://policeauthority.org/metropolitan/news/press/2009/6/047/index.html |title=Metropolitan Police Authority appoints new MPS Assistant Commissioner Specialist Crime |publisher=[[Metropolitan Police Authority]] |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-date=4 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804121114/http://policeauthority.org/metropolitan/news/press/2009/6/047/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> She became the first woman to become an assistant commissioner.<ref name=DickLeave /> Within the specialist crime directorate, Dick was trained as a [[hostage negotiator]].<ref name=2008BBCProfile /><ref>Christina Lamb, [https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/cressida-dick-met-police-lockdown-protests-london-3gzmpjvzf Cressida Dick on lockdown, protests and London's difficult year] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314090101/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/cressida-dick-met-police-lockdown-protests-london-3gzmpjvzf |date=14 March 2021 }}, ''The Times of London'' (28 November 2020).</ref>

In July 2011, Dick was appointed assistant commissioner, specialist operations (responsible for the MPS's [[counter-terrorism]] operations) following the resignation of [[John Yates (police officer)|John Yates]] in the wake of the [[News International phone hacking scandal]].<ref>{{cite news |date=19 July 2011 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8645881/Phone-Hacking-botched-de-Menezes-operation-officer-now-counter-terrorism-head.html |title=Phone Hacking: botched de Menezes operation officer now counter-terrorism head |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=15 June 2012 |archive-date=27 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127211004/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8645881/Phone-Hacking-botched-de-Menezes-operation-officer-now-counter-terrorism-head.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In this role, Dick oversaw [[Security for the 2012 Summer Olympics|security operations]] for the [[2012 London Olympics]].<ref name=31YearsLeaves />

In 2011 Dick was appointed acting deputy commissioner, and held the post between the retirement of [[Tim Godwin]] and the commencement of the new deputy commissioner [[Craig Mackey]]'s term at the beginning of 2012.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://jewishpoliceassociation.org.uk/praise-for-jpa/|title=Praise for JPA &#124; Jewish Police Association|access-date=7 September 2021|archive-date=7 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907223320/https://jewishpoliceassociation.org.uk/praise-for-jpa/|url-status=live}}</ref> She held the rank until 23 January 2012.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.met.police.uk/about/dick.htm |title=Acting Deputy Commissioner Cressida Dick |publisher=[[Metropolitan Police Service]] |date=27 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111223143551/http://www.met.police.uk/about/dick.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 December 2011}}</ref>

Commissioner [[Bernard Hogan-Howe]] subsequently ousted her from her position as the MPS's counterterrorism head after their relationship became strained.<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /><ref name=WalksTightrope>Vikram Dodd, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/14/cressida-dick-walking-a-tightrope-over-policing-of-sarah-everard-vigil Cressida Dick walking a tightrope over policing of Sarah Everard vigil] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315033208/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/14/cressida-dick-walking-a-tightrope-over-policing-of-sarah-everard-vigil |date=15 March 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (14 March 2021).</ref> In mid-2014, Dick had been one of three short-listed candidates for the position of chief constable of the [[Police Service of Northern Ireland]],<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /><ref name=McDonald>Henry McDonald, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/29/met-cressida-dick-interview-northern-ireland-police-chief-constable Met's Cressida Dick faces interview for top Northern Ireland police job] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411200116/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/29/met-cressida-dick-interview-northern-ireland-police-chief-constable |date=11 April 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (29 May 2014).</ref> but [[George Hamilton (Northern Ireland police officer)|George Hamilton]] was selected for the role instead.<ref>Henry McDonald,[https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/29/george-hamilton-chief-constable-police-service-northern-ireland George Hamilton to be chief constable of Police Service of Northern Ireland] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200329114518/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/29/george-hamilton-chief-constable-police-service-northern-ireland |date=29 March 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'' (29 May 2014).</ref> It was announced in December 2014 that she would retire from the police in 2015 to join the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office|Foreign Office]], in an unspecified [[director-general]] level posting.<ref>{{cite news |date=1 December 2014 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-30277353 |title=Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick to leave Met Police |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=1 December 2014 |archive-date=1 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141201115005/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-30277353 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=31YearsLeaves /><ref>{{cite news |last=Peachey |first=Paul |date=2 December 2014 |title=Britain's top policewoman quits Scotland Yard for the Foreign Office |newspaper=[[i (newspaper)|i]]}}</ref> The Foreign Office refused [[Freedom of information in the United Kingdom|Freedom of Information requests]] for information on her job title, role and responsibilities, or her wage.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gallagher|first=Ryan|date=10 April 2015|title=Secrecy Shrouds Unknown Role of Top UK Government Official|url=https://theintercept.com/2015/04/10/cressida-dick-uk-foreign-office-secret/|website=The Intercept|access-date=13 March 2021|archive-date=13 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313112203/https://theintercept.com/2015/04/10/cressida-dick-uk-foreign-office-secret/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-taken/decision-notices/2015/1432472/fs_50585221.pdf |website=Information Commissioner's Office |title=Freedom of Information Act Decision Notice FS50585221 |date=3 September 2015 |access-date=18 June 2021 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624200534/https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-taken/decision-notices/2015/1432472/fs_50585221.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> In the ''Daily Telegraph'', Martin Evans wrote that she had "an unspecified and rather shadowy security role" at the Foreign Office.<ref name=Feb2017ProfileTelegraph />

=== Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police ===
[[File:Cressida Dick with Amber Rudd and Sadiq Khan.jpg|thumb|right|Dick with [[Home Secretary]] [[Amber Rudd]] and [[Mayor of London]] [[Sadiq Khan]] on the day her appointment as the next Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police was announced.]]
On 22 February 2017, the [[Home Office]] and the MPS jointly announced that Dick would be appointed as the next Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. Her appointment was supported by the [[Home Secretary]] [[Amber Rudd]].<ref>{{cite news |date=22 February 2017 |title=Met Police appoints first female chief Cressida Dick |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39055696 |work=BBC News |access-date=22 February 2017 |archive-date=22 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222145221/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39055696 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=IANS>{{cite news|agency=Indo-Asian News Service|title=UK Appoints First Woman Scotland Yard Chief in 187-Year History|url=https://www.thequint.com/world/2017/02/23/london-appoints-cressida-dick-first-woman-scotland-yard-chief|date=23 February 2017|access-date=23 February 2017|archive-date=23 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223214505/https://www.thequint.com/world/2017/02/23/london-appoints-cressida-dick-first-woman-scotland-yard-chief|url-status=live}}</ref> The appointment was formally made by Queen Elizabeth II,<ref name=IANS /> via a [[Royal sign-manual|warrant under the royal sign-manual]],<ref name=Wit /><ref name=WalksTightrope /><ref>{{London Gazette |issue=61905|date=20 April 2007|page=8434}}</ref> on the [[Advice (constitutional)|recommendation]] of Rudd.<ref name=IANS /><ref name=WalksTightrope /> (MPS commissioners are selected by the Home Secretary with input from the [[mayor of London]].<ref name=WalksTightrope />) Dick was selected over three other short-listed contenders: [[Sara Thornton (police officer)|Sara Thornton]], the chair of the [[National Police Chiefs' Council]]; [[Mark Rowley]], an assistant commissioner for counterterrorism at the Met, and [[Stephen Kavanagh]], the chief constable of the [[Essex Police]].<ref>Vikram Dodd, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/feb/02/two-women-metropolitan-police-commissioner-cressida-dick-sara-thornton-mark-rowley-stephen-kavanagh Two women among final four for Metropolitan police top job] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205181221/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/feb/02/two-women-metropolitan-police-commissioner-cressida-dick-sara-thornton-mark-rowley-stephen-kavanagh |date=5 December 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'' (2 February 2017).</ref> The term of the police commissioner is five years, although two of Dick's last three predecessors were ousted early.<ref name=WalksTightrope />

Dick assumed office on 10 April 2017; her first official engagement was the funeral of [[Keith Palmer (police officer)|PC Keith Palmer]], the officer killed in [[2017 Westminster attack|a terrorist attack at the Westminster Bridge]], outside the [[Palace of Westminster]], the previous month.<ref>{{cite news |last=Davies |first=Caroline |date=10 April 2017 |title=PC Keith Palmer funeral: police pay tribute to officer's heroism |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/apr/10/pc-keith-palmer-funeral-cortege-makes-journey-to-southwark-cathedral |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=18 May 2017 |archive-date=18 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170518010813/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/apr/10/pc-keith-palmer-funeral-cortege-makes-journey-to-southwark-cathedral |url-status=live }}</ref>

As commissioner, Dick has criticised police budget cuts, saying that they inhibit the MPS's operations, including [[counterterrorism]] efforts; she has attributed rising violent [[crime in London]] in part due to budget cuts.<ref>{{cite news |date=22 September 2017 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41356593 |title=UK's terror fight 'puts unsustainable strain on police' |work=BBC News |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-date=30 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130205813/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41356593 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Dodd |first=Vikram |date=31 October 2017 |title=Met police chief warns further cuts will make it harder to fight crime |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/oct/31/met-police-chief-warns-further-cuts-will-make-it-harder-to-fight-crime |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-date=6 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206130047/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/oct/31/met-police-chief-warns-further-cuts-will-make-it-harder-to-fight-crime |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=2018BudgetCuts>[https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/may/18/metropolitan-police-cressida-dick-budget-cuts-violent-crime-rise-london Met chief says budget cuts have contributed to rise in violent crime] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180518165659/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/may/18/metropolitan-police-cressida-dick-budget-cuts-violent-crime-rise-london |date=18 May 2018 }} ''[[The Guardian]]''. 18 May 2018</ref> In June 2017, after the terrorist attacks at Westminster, [[2017 London Bridge attack|London Bridge]], and [[2017 Finsbury Park attack|Finsbury Park]], Dick called for the government to give more resources for police; budgets and police force strength had declined from a peak in 2009–2010.<ref>Frances Perraudin & Alan Travis, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/20/cressida-dick-calls-for-more-money-for-the-met-after-terrorist-attacks Cressida Dick calls for more money for the Met after terrorist attacks] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412162411/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/20/cressida-dick-calls-for-more-money-for-the-met-after-terrorist-attacks |date=12 April 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (20 June 2017).</ref> In 2018, the number of MPS police officers fell below 35,000 for the first time in 15 years; Dick sought to "get to well over 30,500 officers, more than 500 more than we currently have" by the end of 2019.<ref name=2018BudgetCuts /> Dick blamed "the glamorisation of violence" and "social media being used to taunt other gangs" as additional factors fueling an increase in violent crime.<ref name=2018BudgetCuts />

Dick expressed concern in 2018 about the impact of a [[no-deal Brexit]], saying that it would be costly and place the public at risk by reducing or eliminating the UK's access to databases, quick extradition processes, and law enforcement cooperation with other EU member states.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/dec/27/cressida-dick-no-deal-brexit-could-put-public-at-risk-metropolitan-police No-deal Brexit could put public at risk, says Met police chief] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181227154932/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/dec/27/cressida-dick-no-deal-brexit-could-put-public-at-risk-metropolitan-police |date=27 December 2018 }}, ''The Guardian'' (27 December 2018).</ref><ref>Danny Shaw, [https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44713944 Cressida Dick: post-Brexit information sharing 'clunkier'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031080745/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44713944 |date=31 October 2020 }}, BBC News (4 July 2018).</ref>

To combat an increase in [[moped crime in London]] (in which criminals on scooters perpetrated "snatch and grab" phone thefts, other [[robberies]], and [[acid attack]]s), Dick allowed [[Police pursuit|pursuing police officers]] to ram moped-riding suspects off the road. The "tactical contact" manoeuvre was criticised by some as unduly risky, but Dick defended the practice, citing a decrease in moped-facilitated crime since police began to use the technique. Dick said that "tactical contact" was used to end moped pursuits on rare occasions by well-trained police who assessed all the risks, adding, that police aimed to "put the fear back into the criminal."<ref>Lizzie Dearden, [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/moped-police-video-ramming-criminals-fear-met-london-cressida-dick-armed-officers-violence-a8661711.html Police 'must put fear back into criminals', Met chief says after officers start ramming mopeds] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205194418/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/moped-police-video-ramming-criminals-fear-met-london-cressida-dick-armed-officers-violence-a8661711.html |date=5 February 2021 }}, ''The Independent'' (30 November 2018).</ref> In late 2018, the Met under Dick approved plans to allow police officers to conduct armed foot patrols of high-crime residential areas, a break from [[Police use of firearms in the United Kingdom|the usual practice of British police not routinely carrying firearms]]. The plan was controversial; the Met stated that the plan would not be a precursor to routine armed patrols, but rather was a limited measure to combat violent, often gang-related crime in London.<ref>Vikram Dodd, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/dec/01/met-police-push-ahead-with-armed-patrols-despite-backlash Met police push ahead with armed patrols despite backlash] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127081245/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/dec/01/met-police-push-ahead-with-armed-patrols-despite-backlash |date=27 January 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (1 December 2018).</ref><ref name=Howdle>Jane Howdle, [https://uk.news.yahoo.com/scotland-yards-proposed-armed-police-patrols-turn-streets-armed-battlegrounds-115620480.html Police plan of armed patrols would turn residential streets into 'battlegrounds' say critics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526114658/https://uk.news.yahoo.com/scotland-yards-proposed-armed-police-patrols-turn-streets-armed-battlegrounds-115620480.html |date=26 May 2021 }}, Yahoo News UK (30 November 2018).</ref> Dick stated that such patrols would be deployed only in "extreme circumstances" to support the unarmed officers.<ref name=Howdle />

Dick's official portrait as commissioner was unveiled in July 2019. The oil painting, which Dick paid for from her salary, depicts the commissioner in front of a map of London, wearing a police shirt rather than full tunic uniform. Dick sat for twenty hours for the portraitist Frances Bell. The painting hangs at the [[Hendon Police College]] alongside portraits of her 26 male predecessors. While portraits are usually unveiled after a commissioner has stepped down, Dick's portrait was unveiled as part of celebrations marking the centenary of [[Women in policing in the United Kingdom|the first woman joining the Met]].<ref>{{Cite web|author=Martin Bentham|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/official-portrait-of-cressida-dick-unveiled-to-mark-100-years-of-women-in-the-met-a4188351.html|title=Cressida Dick portrait marks 100 years of women in the Met|website=Evening Standard|date=12 July 2019|access-date=13 July 2019|archive-date=13 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190713095404/https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/official-portrait-of-cressida-dick-unveiled-to-mark-100-years-of-women-in-the-met-a4188351.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.itv.com/news/london/2019-07-12/portrait-unveiled-of-the-first-female-commissioner-of-the-metropolitan-police/|title=Portrait unveiled of the first female Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police|publisher=ITV News|date=12 July 2019|access-date=13 July 2019|archive-date=13 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190713095404/https://www.itv.com/news/london/2019-07-12/portrait-unveiled-of-the-first-female-commissioner-of-the-metropolitan-police/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Criticism of Dick's tenure has focused on the MPS's actions in the aftermath [[Operation Midland]], a botched MPS investigation into alleged child sex abuse.<ref name=WalksTightrope /> The investigation, triggered by the false allegations of a fantasist who was later convicted of [[perverting the course of justice]] and [[fraud]], collapsed in 2016.<ref name=FreshDemands>Martin Evans, Robert Mendick & Charles Hymas, [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/13/cressida-dick-faces-fresh-demands-resign-report-carl-beech-blunders/ Cressida Dick faces fresh demands to resign after report into Carl Beech blunders] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315104551/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/13/cressida-dick-faces-fresh-demands-resign-report-carl-beech-blunders/ |date=15 March 2021 }}, ''The Telegraph'' (13 March 2020).</ref><ref name=Cleared2020>[https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-51806697 Met Commissioner Cressida Dick cleared over paedophile ring inquiry] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412183207/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-51806697 |date=12 April 2021 }}, BBC News (9 March 2020).</ref> An inquiry led by Sir [[Richard Henriques]] identified 43 mistakes by the MPS and made 25 urgent recommendations for the MPS to adopt, but a [[Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services]] (HMICFRS) report concluded that the MPS had delayed implementing most of the recommendations, with the MPS starting to adopt most reforms in 2019 under pressure from the Home Office.<ref name=FreshDemands /> Six former home secretaries said that the police operation undermined public confidence in the police, and Dick faced pressure to resign over the matter.<ref name=FreshDemands /><ref>David Brown & Fiona Hamilton, [https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/operation-midland-hurt-faith-in-police-say-former-home-secretaries-33d9q89xr Operation Midland hurt faith in police, say former home secretaries] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314175841/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/operation-midland-hurt-faith-in-police-say-former-home-secretaries-33d9q89xr |date=14 March 2021 }}, ''The Times'' (8 March 2021).</ref> In 2020, however, the [[Independent Office for Police Conduct]] cleared Dick of allegations relating to the investigation, finding no evidence that she had "deliberately misled the public regarding her role" in the operation,<ref name=Cleared2020 /> in which Dick had been briefly involved in 2014, before leaving the Met to join the Foreign Office.<ref>Matthew Weaver, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/17/cressida-dick-criticises-pm-boris-johnson-over-speech-to-police-recruits Cressida Dick criticises PM over speech to police recruits] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710024503/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/17/cressida-dick-criticises-pm-boris-johnson-over-speech-to-police-recruits |date=10 July 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'' (17 September 2019).</ref>

During Dick's tenure, racial disparities in the MPS's use of [[stop and search]] were also controversial; black and ethnic minority Britons are many times more likely than white Britons to be stopped and searched by police. Critics contend that the disparity is caused by racial discrimination among police, and that the tactic alienates minority communities. Dick, with the support of Home Secretary [[Amber Rudd]], staunchly defended the use of stop and search, contending that the measure effectively combats [[knife crime]] and saves lives.<ref>Dipesh Gadher and Christina Lamb, [https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/cressida-dick-black-boys-nine-times-more-likely-to-be-murdered-cv6ts7qmm Cressida Dick: Black boys 'nine times more likely to be murdered'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315014510/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/cressida-dick-black-boys-nine-times-more-likely-to-be-murdered-cv6ts7qmm |date=15 March 2021 }}, ''The Times of London'' (28 November 2020).</ref><ref>Mark Townsend, [https://www.theguardian.com/law/2019/may/04/stop-and-search-new-row-racial-bias Black people '40 times more likely' to be stopped and searched in UK] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201220044248/https://www.theguardian.com/law/2019/may/04/stop-and-search-new-row-racial-bias |date=20 December 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'' (4 May 2019).</ref><ref>Jamie Grierson, [https://www.theguardian.com/law/2020/jul/08/one-in-10-of-londons-young-black-males-stopped-by-police-in-may Met carried out 22,000 searches on young black men during lockdown] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315124538/https://www.theguardian.com/law/2020/jul/08/one-in-10-of-londons-young-black-males-stopped-by-police-in-may |date=15 March 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (8 July 2020).</ref><ref>Matthew Weaver & Rowena Mason, [https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/aug/09/amber-rudd-backs-met-police-chief-cressida-dick-stop-and-search Amber Rudd backs Met police chief on use of stop and search] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412183205/https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/aug/09/amber-rudd-backs-met-police-chief-cressida-dick-stop-and-search |date=12 April 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (9 August 2017).</ref>

In 2018, Dick launched a campaign to increase the proportion of female officers in the MPS. At the time, 27% of Met officers were women; Dick aimed to increase that figure to 50% over time, although she did not set a target date.<ref>Vikram Dodd, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/nov/22/met-police-launches-drive-to-recruit-women-to-male-dominated-ranks Met police launch drive to balance the gender ranks] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323003524/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/nov/22/met-police-launches-drive-to-recruit-women-to-male-dominated-ranks |date=23 March 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (22 November 2018).</ref> In 2020, London Mayor [[Sadiq Khan]] and the MPS announced that that police force would aim to have at least 40% of their recruits be from [[Black, Asian and minority ethnic]] backgrounds by 2022; Dick said that the MPS was "not free from racism or discrimination" and the MPS was "committed to eliminating the disproportionate use of force on Black Londoners."<ref>Elian Peltier, [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/13/world/europe/london-police-discrimination.html London Police to Recruit 40% of Officers From Minority Backgrounds] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210403220812/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/13/world/europe/london-police-discrimination.html |date=3 April 2021 }}, ''New York Times'' (13 November 2020).</ref>

Dick has defended the controversial police use of live [[facial recognition system]]s.<ref name=FacialRecognition2020>[https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-51628833 Met Police chief defends facial recognition from 'ill-informed' critics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417160701/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-51628833 |date=17 April 2021 }}, BBC News (25 February 2020).</ref><ref name=Gayle>Damien Gayle, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/nov/10/police-hamstrung-over-facial-recognition-tech-says-met-chief-cressida-dick Police 'hamstrung' over facial recognition tech, says Met chief] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227075958/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/nov/10/police-hamstrung-over-facial-recognition-tech-says-met-chief-cressida-dick |date=27 February 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (10 November 2018).</ref> In 2018, Dick said that police were "hamstrung" by legal limitations over the use of facial recognition.<ref name=Gayle /> in 2020, after the [[Royal United Services Institute]] issued a report recommending regulations on police use of the technology, Dick said that privacy campaigners were "ill-informed" and that facial recognition was a valuable tool to apprehend "the criminals, the rapists, the terrorists and all those who want to harm you, your family and friends."<ref name=FacialRecognition2020 />

Dick has been critical of the depiction of police in the television drama ''[[Line of Duty]]''; in 2019, while accepting that the [[police procedural]] was "good drama" and could raise public interest in the police, Dick said she was "absolutely outraged" at the show depicting "casual and extreme corruption" as a common occurrence in policing.<ref>Ben Quinn, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/24/met-chief-cressida-dick-outraged-line-of-duty-corruption-portrayal Met chief 'outraged' at Line of Duty over corruption portrayal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313213843/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/24/met-chief-cressida-dick-outraged-line-of-duty-corruption-portrayal |date=13 March 2021 }}, ''The Guardian'' (25 September 2019).</ref>

In March 2021, Dick was criticised for Metropolitan Police's handling of a vigil for [[Sarah Everard]], who was abducted and murdered by a Met officer in south London.<ref name=Grierson>Jamie Grierson, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/mar/11/met-police-breached-rights-of-organisers-of-sarah-everard-vigil-court-rules Met police breached rights of organisers of Sarah Everard vigil, court rules]. ''The Guardian'' (March 11, 2022).</ref> At the vigils, officers arrested four attendees, alleging violations of [[Coronavirus Act 2020|COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Da Silva |first=Chantal |author-link=Chantal Da Silva |date=14 March 2021 |title=Sarah Everard vigil – latest: Cressida Dick under pressure to resign after 'disturbing' police response |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sarah-everard-vigil-news-protest-police-b1816930.html |url-status=live |access-date=14 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210315001401/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sarah-everard-vigil-news-protest-police-b1816930.html |archive-date=15 March 2021}}</ref> Liberal Democrat leader [[Ed Davey]] led calls for her resignation.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|date=14 March 2021|title=Sarah Everard: Met criticised over Clapham vigil policing|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56389824|access-date=14 March 2021|archive-date=14 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314003444/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56389824|url-status=live}}</ref> Dick defended the MPS's conduct; said that policing was "fiendishly difficult"; and criticised what she called "armchair" critics.<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> She also suggested that if women felt unsafe when approached by officers they should resist arrest, run away, then "wave down a bus" or call 999; these remarks prompted criticism that Dick and the Met were not taking the matter seriously.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Met Police: Run away and call 999 if you feel in danger when stopped by lone 'officer'|url=https://www.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/james-obrien/sarah-everard-wayne-couzens-undercover-police-warrant/|access-date=1 October 2021|website=LBC|language=en|archive-date=30 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930221048/https://www.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/james-obrien/sarah-everard-wayne-couzens-undercover-police-warrant/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=1 October 2021|title=Sarah Everard case: people stopped by lone officer could 'wave down a bus', says Met|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/oct/01/police-must-win-back-public-confidence-after-sarah-everard-case-says-minister|access-date=1 October 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=1 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211001073354/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/oct/01/police-must-win-back-public-confidence-after-sarah-everard-case-says-minister|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom)|Opposition Leader]] [[Keir Starmer]], London mayor [[Sadiq Khan]], campaigners and backbench MPs all criticised the Metropolitan Police.<ref name=ConfidenceFalling /> Dick retained the confidence of Prime Minister [[Boris Johnson]] and [[Home Secretary]] [[Priti Patel]]. Patel directed [[Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services]] (HMICFRS) to look into the police response to the incident.<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56389824 Sarah Everard: Met Police chief will not resign over vigil scenes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314030643/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56389824 |date=14 March 2021 }}, BBC News (15 March 2021).</ref> HMICFRS reported in March 2021 that the police "reacted appropriately and were not heavy handed" and were "justified" in their handling of the vigil.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/sarah-everard-police-vigil-review-b1824335.html |title=Police 'acted appropriately and were not heavy handed' at Sarah Everard vigil, review says |last1=Osborne |first1=John |last2=Stone |first2=Jon |date=31 March 2021 |work=Independent |access-date=1 April 2021 |archive-date=1 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401165635/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/sarah-everard-police-vigil-review-b1824335.html |url-status=live }}</ref> A whistleblower within HMICFRS, however, filed a formal complaint alleging that the inspectorate's review of the vigil, as well as other demonstrations, had been marred by a repeated pro-police bias, anti-demonstrator bias in violation of the [[Civil Service (United Kingdom)|Civil Service Code]].<ref>Vikram Dodd, [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/31/police-watchdog-accused-of-skewing-report-to-back-protests-clampdown Police watchdog accused of skewing report to back protests clampdown], ''The Guardian'' (March 31, 2022).</ref> Reclaim These Streets, which organised the vigil, subsequently prevailed in a lawsuit against the Met; the [[High Court of England and Wales|High Court]] ruled in March 2022 that the police force had violated participants' human rights to freedom of speech and assembly, and had failed to conduct a proper proportionality assessment when determining what actions to take.<ref name=Grierson/>

In the 2021 report into the [[murder of Daniel Morgan]], Dick was criticised for hampering efforts to gain access to important information, causing delays in the report's release.<ref name=vikram1>{{Cite news|last=Dodd|first=Vikram|date=15 June 2021|title=Daniel Morgan murder: Met chief censured for hampering corruption inquiry|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/15/daniel-morgan-met-chief-censured-for-hampering-corruption-inquiry|access-date=15 June 2021|archive-date=15 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210615114604/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/15/daniel-morgan-met-chief-censured-for-hampering-corruption-inquiry|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=vikram2 />

In February 2022 a report was released by the [[Independent Office for Police Conduct]] (IOPC) accusing officers at Charing Cross Police Station of misogyny, racism, discrimination, bullying and sexual assault and suggesting these were not isolated cases within the police force.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2022-02-01|title=Met Police: Misogyny, racism, bullying, sex harassment discovered|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-60215575|access-date=2022-02-12}}</ref>

On 10 February 2022, Dick announced her resignation as Met Commissioner, stating that "the Mayor no longer has sufficient confidence in my leadership".<ref name="MET resig">{{cite web |title=Statement from Commissioner Cressida Dick |url=https://news.met.police.uk/news/statement-from-commissioner-cressida-dick-442200 |website=Mynewsdesk |publisher=Metropolitan Police |access-date=10 February 2022 |archive-date=10 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210192808/https://news.met.police.uk/news/statement-from-commissioner-cressida-dick-442200 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Ian Blair]], a former Met police commissioner, has said [[Boris Johnson]] should not be involved in appointing Dick's successor due to being subject to a police investigation over [[Partygate#Police investigation|possible breaches of COVID regulations]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Skopeliti |first1=Clea |title=Boris Johnson 'should not be involved in picking new Met chief' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/feb/12/boris-johnson-ian-blair-new-met-chief |access-date=12 February 2022 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=12 February 2022}}</ref>  Dick left office on 10 April 2022.<ref name = leavedate /> 
Sir [[Stephen House]] took over the role as Acting Commissioner until a successor, [[Mark Rowley|Sir Mark Rowley]], was appointed in July 2022.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/mar/28/cressida-dick-to-leave-met-police-role-in-april-says-priti-patel Cressida Dick to leave Met police earlier than planned, says Priti Patel] ''[[The Guardian]]''</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-07-08 |title=Sir Mark Rowley named as Met Police commissioner |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-62095222 |access-date=2022-07-08 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> In January 2023, Met police constable [[David Carrick (serial rapist)|David Carrick]] pled guilty to 49 account of sexual offences against twelve women, and lifted reporting restrictions revealed that the Met's mishandling of his case was part of the reason Dick had been ousted.<ref name = carrickscandal >{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/16/metropolitan-police-officer-david-carrick-revealed-as-serial-rapist | title = Elite Metropolitan police officer David Carrick revealed as serial rapist | date = 16 January 2023 | access-date = 16 January 2023 | newspaper = The Guardian}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Dick [[Coming out|came out]] as lesbian in April 2017, making her the highest-ranked openly gay officer in British police history. Her partner, Helen, was an Inspector in the MPS in South London before retiring in 2017.<ref name="Gerdes">{{cite news |last=Gerdes |first=Stefanie |date=19 April 2017 |title=London's highest ranking police officer quietly comes out |url=https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/cressida-dick-relationship/ |work=[[Gay Star News]] |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-date=25 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180425121751/https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/cressida-dick-relationship/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/keep-sexuality-undercover-met-boss-told-paddick-k0z7gcvm7 |title= Keep sexuality undercover, Met police boss Cressida Dick told Brian Paddick |work= The Times |author= Tom Harper |date= 30 September 2018 |access-date= 6 March 2019 |archive-date= 6 March 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190306234849/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/keep-sexuality-undercover-met-boss-told-paddick-k0z7gcvm7 |url-status= live }}</ref>

== Honours ==
Dick was awarded the [[Queen's Police Medal]] for Distinguished Service in the [[2010 New Year Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=59282 |date=31 December 2009 |page=25 |supp=y}}</ref> She was appointed a [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (CBE) in the [[2015 New Year Honours]] for services to policing.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=61092 |date=31 December 2014 |page=N9 |supp=y}}</ref> In September 2019, she was promoted to [[Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (DBE) in [[2019 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours|Theresa May's resignation honours]].<ref name="BBC-49639222">{{cite news |title=Boycott 'doesn't give a toss' about award critics |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-49639222 |access-date=10 September 2019 |date=10 September 2019 |archive-date=10 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910040524/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-49639222 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2013, she was named one of the 100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom by ''[[Woman's Hour]]'' on [[BBC Radio 4]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007qlvb/features/power-list-100 |publisher=[[BBC Radio 4]] |title=The Power List 2013 |website=[[Woman's Hour]] |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-date=15 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130215063524/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007qlvb/features/power-list-100 |url-status=live }}</ref>

<div class="center">
[[File:Order of the British Empire (Civil) Ribbon.png|100px]]
[[File:Queens Police Medal for Merit.png|100px]]
<br />
[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:Police Long Service and Good Conduct ribbon.png|100px]]
</div>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto;"
|- style="background:silver;" align="center"
|Ribbon || Description || Notes
|-
|[[File:Order of the British Empire (Civil) Ribbon.png|40px]] || [[Order of the British Empire]] (DBE) ||
* Commander
:: Civil Division
:: [[2015 New Year Honours|2015 New Years Honours List]]
* Dame Commander
:: Civil Division
:: [[2019 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours|2019 Resignation Honours List]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/830277/Resignation-Honours-2019.pdf |title=Resignation Honours 2019 |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=10 September 2019 |website=gov.uk |publisher=Cabinet Office |access-date=10 September 2019 |quote=KBE/DBE Cressida DICK CBE QPM Commissionerof the Metropolitan Police Service. For public service. |archive-date=5 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205123047/https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/830277/Resignation-Honours-2019.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[File:Queens Police Medal for Merit.png|40px]] || [[Queen's Police Medal]] (QPM) ||
* For Distinguished Service
:: [[2010 New Year Honours|2010 New Years Honours List]]
|-
|[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 2002
* UK Version of this Medal
|-
|[[File:QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 2012
* UK Version of this Medal
|-
|[[File:UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 2022
* UK Version of this Medal
|-
|[[File:Police Long Service and Good Conduct ribbon.png|40px]] || [[Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal]] ||
|-
|}

===Scholastic===
; Chancellor, visitor, governor, rector and fellowships
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
! style="width:20%;"| Location
! style="width:20%;"| Date
! style="width:40%;"| School
! style="width:20%;"| Position
|-
| {{Flagu|England}} || '''2 December 2019{{spaced ndash}}present''' || [[Balliol College, Oxford]]  || [[Honorary title (academic)|Honorary Fellow]]<ref>{{cite web |title=New Honorary Fellows 2019 |url=https://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/news/2019/december/new-honorary-fellows-2019 |website=Balliol College University of Oxford |access-date=13 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagu|England}} ||  || [[Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge]]  || [[Honorary title (academic)|Honorary Fellow]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Honorary Fellows at Fitz |url=https://www.fitz.cam.ac.uk/about/people/honorary-fellows-fitz |website=Fitzwilliam College University of Cambridge |access-date=13 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|}

{{Expand list|date=February 2022}}

;Honorary degrees

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
! style="width:20%;"| Location
! style="width:20%;"| Date
! style="width:40%;"| School
! style="width:20%;"| Degree
! style="width:20%;"| Gave commencement address
|-
| {{Flagu|England}} || '''2015''' || [[University of Westminster]] || [[Doctor of Letters]] (D.Litt.)<ref>{{cite web |title=Honorary Awards 2015 |url=https://www.westminster.ac.uk/about-us/our-people/honorary-awards/honorary-awards-2015 |website=University of Chester |access-date=13 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref> || Yes
|-
| {{Flagu|England}} || '''19 July 2018''' || [[Cranfield University]] || Doctorate<ref>{{cite web |title=UK's most senior police officer awarded honorary degree from Cranfield |url=https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/press/news-2018/uks-most-senior-police-officer-awarded-honorary-degree-from-cranfield |website=Cranfield University |access-date=13 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref> || Yes
|-
| {{Flagu|Wales}} ||  || [[Cardiff Metropolitan University]] || Doctorate<ref>{{cite web |title=Cardiff Metropolitan University Awards Top Honour to Met Police Commissioner |url=https://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/news/Pages/Cardiff-Metropolitan-University-Awards-Top-Honour-to-Met-Police-Commissioner.aspx |website=Cardiff Metropolitan University |access-date=13 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref> || Yes
|-
|}

{{Expand list|date=February 2022}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{commons category}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-civ|pol}}
{{s-bef|rows=2|before=[[John Yates (police officer)|John Yates]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]<br />(Specialist Crime Directorate)| years=2009–2011}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Lynne Owens]]}}
|-
{{s-ttl|title=[[Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]<br />(Specialist Operations)| years=2011–2015}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mark Rowley]]}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Bernard Hogan-Howe|Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]|years=2017–2022}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Stephen House]] '''(acting)'''}}
{{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dick, Cressida}}
[[Category:1960 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:21st-century English LGBTQ people]]
[[Category:People from Oxford]]
[[Category:People educated at Oxford High School, England]]
[[Category:Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford]]
[[Category:Alumni of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis]]
[[Category:People educated at The Dragon School]]
[[Category:Metropolitan Police recipients of the Queen's Police Medal]]
[[Category:Women Metropolitan Police officers]]
[[Category:Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:English lesbians]]
[[Category:Lesbian police officers]]
[[Category:British women police officers]]
[[Category:20th-century English LGBTQ people]]