Met is rocked by 'apartheid' row

SCOTLAND YARD is facing new claims of racism over allegations of an "apartheid" culture involving police community support officers at a London station.

It comes on the day the new Met chief denies claims that his force is still racist 10 years on from a damning report following the murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence.

The charges due to go before an employment tribunal include claims that police ran one van for white PCSOs and another for black PCSOs.

Evening Standard's revelations led to Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson making an addition to a speech in which he referred to "pockets of stupidity and bigotry" that still had to be challenged in the force.

Stephen's mother Doreen said: "If this is what has happened it is quite shocking considering all the work that senior officers are putting in to stamp out racism in the force."

Today it emerged that the case has led to a major review of the duties of PCSOs in Westminster and how they are supervised. Senior officers say they dealt with the issue "swiftly and robustly" and ensured it could not happen again.

The claims are made by PCSO Asad Saeed in a race discrimination case and centre on two white PCSOs at Belgravia station who have now resigned from the force after facing charges of gross misconduct.

He claims they effectively ran an "apartheid" culture at the station where ethnic minority support officers were threatened with violence by the two white officers.

The claims contained in a document to be submitted to the tribunal include the allegations of a "white van, black van" for PCSO staff.

In particular, he outlines one incident when a black woman PCSO was ejected from one van by a white colleague and told to get into "the black van".

The two men would also play a "spot the PCSO" game when a van would drive around at night looking for ethnic minority officers. There are also claims that one white PCSO "boasted" that his family were all members of the British National Party.

Mr Saeed is claiming discrimination after he was sacked by the force in 2007 for allegedly beating up a vagrant outside a McDonald's in Victoria Street, Westminster. He was re-instated on appeal last year but his alleged offence was upheld and he has received a final written warning. The Muslim officer is claiming he was set up by a racist clique of white PCSOs backed by police officers at Belgravia. He states that CCTV footage of the McDonald's incident found he acted properly.

An investigation found that concerns about racism at the station were not reported because ethnic minority officers were frightened of one of the white PCSOs and had no confidence they would be investigated. In a significant comment, a panel of officers examining Mr Saeed's case said the finding was "disturbing" saying the "lessons of Lawrence appeared to need re-learning".

In a statement today the Met said it would be inappropriate to comment on the case but confirmed that "Asad Saeed, a serving police community support officer, has lodged an employment tribunal claim for race discrimination".

The Met is understood to be contesting the discrimination claim arguing that it is separate from the allegations of racist behaviour.

Mr Saeed's claims are being supported by the Met's Black Police Association which has repeatedly accused the force of racism.

The document to be submitted to the employment tribunal also include allegations that PCSOs gambled in police station common rooms, traded in counterfeit merchandise in the station and made up names for stop and search forms.

Commenting on the latest allegations, Mrs Lawrence said senior officers were making great efforts to stamp out racism but the experience of young people on the street showed that there was still discrimination from some frontline officers.

She was critical of comments from Sir Paul and Justice Minister Jack Straw who said that institutional racism no longer existed.

She said these comments would make racist officers on the street feel comfortable in their behaviour.

Speaking at a conference in Westminster to mark the 10th anniversary of the Macpherson report into the Met following Stephen's murder, Sir Paul said the study remained the "touchstone" against which the force measured the change in its culture.

After hearing of the Standard's revelations, Sir Paul added to his speech this morning, saying: "Of course, every story of failure — and inevitably there will be some — every headline properly highlighting any remaining pocket of stupidity and bigotry will add to the challenge."

But he said he no longer believed the label of institutional racism to be "either appropriate or useful".

Sir Paul also spoke to Mrs Lawrence, telling her: "We will not forget what brought us to this place as we move on."

Earlier this month the Runnymede Trust who advised the Macpherson inquiry, published a review of progress in the police which concluded that black and Asian people still suffered discrimination.

But a report by Trevor Phillips, head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, found police could no longer be accused of institutional racism.