Here is a police statement: we are not woke or anti-woke, or fighting a culture war. We just strive to be fair | Matt Jukes

As a review highlights leadership deficiencies, we see the need for improvement. But being dragged into polarised debates doesn’t help

• Matt Jukes is deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan police

• ‘Nepotism and bias’ rife in England and Wales police leadership, report finds

It has become almost impossible to discuss policing today without someone trying to place it on one side of a political argument or another. Depending on who is speaking, policing is either “too woke” or not progressive enough. Police leaders are criticised for doing too much, then criticised for doing too little.

This can become a distraction from the question that really matters: are we building a police service capable of protecting the public, treating people fairly and keeping communities safe?

Matt Jukes is deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan police

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