Scotland Yard tackling 'culture of fear': Report

Draconian use of unrealistic performance targets are creating a "culture of fear" among officers of Scotland Yard, a new report into the UK's elite police force has said.
The report, compiled by the Metropolitan (Met) Police Federation from interviews and surveys with 250 officers, calls some targets "meaningless" and "unrealistic" and says others are "disguised" by senior officers.
"There is evidence of a persistent and growing culture of fear spawned by the vigorous and often draconian application of performance targets, with many officers reporting that they feel almost constantly under threat of being blamed and subsequently punished for failing to hit targets," the report says.

John Tully, chairman of the Federation, said the report painted a "devastating" picture.
"I think there is need for some change. We need to look at that," he said.
The report has been submitted to Met Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe and other senior officers.

The Met Police Federation represents about 30,000 officers at the rank chief inspector and below.
Scotland Yard, however, denied officers were being unfairly pressurised.
"We make no excuses for having a culture that values performance. We have pledged to reduce crime, increase confidence and cut costs. It's a big task and we have a robust framework in place to ensure we achieve this. The public expects no less," it said in a statement.