Book Condition Very Good with Good DJ, evident signs of shelf wear including one or two small tears to DJ. Text inside is clean, clear and vright. Tightly bound volume. Born in a Glasgow tenement 90 years ago, Sir David McNee rose to become the most powerful policeman in Britain. As Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police between 1977 and the autumn of 1982, he wielded great influence and, by necessity, became privy to secrets which other, less robust men would have taken to their graves long ago. But on the eve of his tenth decade, and 33 years after his retirement from the top job, a cloud, or at least a question mark, has appeared over his time as boss at New Scotland Yard. It concerns an alleged ‘cover-up’, and in this instance the circumstances are particularly disturbing, given that it would have involved turning a blind eye to the sexual abuse of minors. Allegations of unchecked VIP paedophile activity in this era are neither new nor rare. Yet BBC’s Newsnight programme reported an instance of apparent official protection of child sex abusers that was fresh and shocking. The report alleged that in 1981, following a three-month police surveillance operation deploying a secret camera, the prominent Liberal MP Cyril Smith was arrested at a paedophile sex party at a council flat in Lambeth, South London. Boys of around 14 years of age recruited from local care homes were present. Other figures allegedly identified by the operation were a senior member of the intelligence agencies and two senior police officers. Smith was reportedly taken to a police station in Westminster. But instead of being remanded in custody and later charged, as the officers on the operation expected, the MP was almost immediately released without bail. The officers’ astonishment was compounded when they were summoned to a meeting and told to hand over all evidence they had gathered on Smith — including notebooks and incriminating video film — and to say nothing more of the affair. If they did speak out they might be prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act. They would be the miscreants, not the morbidly obese child molester. The question of McNee's role in this affair remains unanswered. Another disturbing aspect of his career concerns one of the most serious riots in London of the 20th century which took place in Brixton over 10, 11, and 12 April 1981. The riot resulted in almost 300 police injuries and 45 members' of the public being injured; over a hundred vehicles were burned, including 56 police vehicles; almost 150 buildings were damaged, with thirty burned. There were 82 arrests. Reports suggested that up to 5,000 people were involved in the riot. McNee considered that it was unfair for the subsequent Scarman Inquiry into the riot to concentrate on policing and not extend in depth to the wider social, political and economic context. His paranoia emerged when he stated that he believed the police were being set up as scapegoats for the riot. Initially McNee alleged the rioting was not spontaneous but organised outside the Brixton area by extremist left-wing militants, however, not surprisingly, no evidence of a prior conspiracy to trigger the riot was uncovered by Lord Scarman. McNee was against the repeal of the sus law, believing absurdly that no evidence had been provided that arrests under that law did harm to the relationship between the police and black people. He did not believe pressure for repeal came from the law-abiding citizens of Brixton but instead from external extremists. Not only was he wrong about Brixton, but he also failed to prevent the sexual abuse of children by British politicians on his watch.
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