§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he will not, in the light of charges of bribery and corruption in the police force made in the book "The Fall of Scotland Yard", move to appoint a Select Committee to investigate all aspects of this matter.
§ Mr. Merlyn ReesMy hon. Friend is well aware of the action taken by Sir Robert Mark, the former Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, to deal with allegations of corruption against members of the Metropolitan Police, not least the extensive investigations which led to the convictions of a number of officers and former officers in the trials in December 1976 and in May and July this year. Against that background, and given that the Director of Public Prosecutions does not contemplate further proceedings on the evidence available to him as a result of those investigations, I do not believe that any further inquiry into the matters dealt with in this book would now be justified.
I should also like to make it clear that, for my part, I feel no misgivings whatsoever as to the determination and ability of the present Commissioner and his 831W senior colleagues to investigate fully and thoroughly any new allegations or complaints that may be made.