Metropolitan Police Federation Responds to Rick Prior’s Suspension Amid Petition Calling for Vote of No Confidence in PFEW CEO

Police Federation Faces Leadership Crisis as Petition Gains Momentum: Over 4,200 Officers Demand Transparency and Change

The Metropolitan Police Federation (MPF) has responded to the suspension of its Chairman, Rick Prior, with a formal statement, confirming that Prior is under investigation by the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW).

The statement reads:

“The Metropolitan Police Federation are aware that Chair Rick Prior has been placed under investigation by the Police Federation of England and Wales. While this investigation takes place, Rick has been asked to step back from all Federation duties.

The MPF are supporting Rick through this process. We hope that this matter is resolved swiftly. The important job of representing and backing our members out there policing the streets of London continues unaffected. We will not be commenting further at this time.”

This statement has brought little comfort to some of Prior’s supporters, who have expressed frustration over what they perceive as a lack of strong resistance from the Federation to the suspension.

Lee Broadbent's Response on X

Lee Broadbent, leading an Investigation and prisoner processing team with 18 years of leadership experience, was quick to voice his concerns on X (formerly Twitter), accusing the MPF of not doing enough to defend Prior. Broadbent's post reads:

“You should be supporting him by strongly resisting the terms of the suspension! There is no allegation that he has misconducted himself. This is an internal, politically motivated power move. You’ve witnessed and all but ignored the kangaroo process used to dismiss Mark Jones and investigate Zoe Wakefield, Ste Hartshorn and others!

Anyone on the @MPFed branch board and council who stands by and allows this to continue beyond today should question why they became a rep in the first place.

You should also start asking, given you now self-fund and are able to operate autonomously and are a fully recognised autonomous branch in regulations, on what authority can the national body suspend a democratically elected Chair from conducting Met business?”

Broadbent’s strong words have amplified the existing tensions surrounding Prior’s suspension, highlighting a growing division within the Federation.

Petition Calls for Vote of No Confidence in PFEW CEO