Thousands of Met Police officers joined force without proper checks as urgent recruitment probe to be launched

Many of these individuals subsequently engaged in misconduct or faced accusations of criminal behaviour.

The scale of the problem extends further still, with the force unable to verify whether pre-employment checks were conducted on approximately 17,000 additional personnel.

HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary has been tasked with examining how such systematic failures were permitted to occur within Britain's largest police service.

The Met's internal examination revealed a troubling pattern of shortcuts in background screening procedures over the five-year period.

Officers with military service histories were not having their armed forces records properly scrutinised before joining the police.

When existing personnel underwent re-vetting, full intelligence checks were being omitted from the process.

Pre-employment referencing procedures, designed to verify candidates' work histories and character, were also not being properly completed.

These departures from standard vetting protocols meant individuals who should have been flagged during recruitment were instead welcomed into the ranks.

The inspection will seek to establish precisely how and why senior figures within the Met decided to deviate from established screening practices.

It will also assess whether adequate safeguards have now been implemented to prevent similar failures recurring.

Shabana Mahmood described the abandonment of vetting procedures as a betrayal of the Met's responsibilities.

"Abandoning vetting checks on officers was a dereliction of the Met's duty to keep London safe," the Home Secretary stated.

"Londoners rightly expect officers to undergo robust checks so that the brightest and best – not criminals - are policing our streets."

She added: "I have asked the Chief Inspector of Constabulary to carry out an inspection as I seek to restore trust in the force's ability to protect and serve the public."

On Tuesday, Ms Mahmood convened a meeting with Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, College of Policing chief executive Sir Andy Marsh, and National Police Chiefs' Council chair Gavin Stephens.

She will also write to every police force across England and Wales demanding the highest standards are maintained.

The Government is now implementing sweeping reforms to ensure such failures cannot be repeated.

Maintaining vetting clearance has become a legal requirement for all serving officers, giving police chiefs the power to automatically dismiss anyone who fails to meet these standards.

For the first time, vetting requirements will be written into law, compelling forces to conduct proper candidate screening.

The inspectorate has also been asked to assess whether other constabularies across England and Wales may have similarly departed from proper vetting procedures.

New legislative measures are being developed to make it easier for chief constables to remove personnel who have received cautions or convictions for offences involving violence against women and girls.

HMICFRS is expected to publish its findings later this year.