Police chief pledges to carry on after gross misconduct finding

In his first public statement since his disciplinary hearing, Chief Constable Grahame Maxwell, 49, apologised for his actions and said: “The last thing in the world I would want to do is undermine the reputation of North Yorkshire Police.”

Mr Maxwell, the first chief constable in the UK to face gross misconduct charges in 34 years, was given a final written warning, to remain in force for 18 months.

But his reputation has been tarnished by the nepotism scandal which also involved his former deputy Adam Briggs, who retired from the North Yorkshire force in February.

It emerged that Mr Maxwell had helped a relative to advance through the first stage of a process to recruit officers for the force, and had authorised Mr Briggs to do the same.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which investigated the affair, revealed that Mr Maxwell’s “unacceptable” initial defence against the allegations was “essentially saying he could do what he wanted because he was the chief constable”.

The strong criticism prompted two Yorkshire MPs to call for Mr Maxwell’s resignation, but he tried to draw a line under the matter yesterday and claimed it was “business as usual” at the force.

He said: “Over the past 24 hours I have reflected on the outcome of the hearing into my actions during the recruitment campaign in February last year.

“I would like to reaffirm my deep and sincere apology to the residents of North Yorkshire, my officers and my police staff.

“The last thing in the world I would want to do is undermine the reputation of North Yorkshire Police.

“I have been Chief Constable for almost four years. North Yorkshire Police has been my life during that time.

“I am immensely proud to be the Chief Constable of North Yorkshire Police and immensely proud of what the people who make up our police force have achieved in that time.

“I want to reassure the public of North Yorkshire... that it is very much business as usual.

“Every day our officers, staff, special constables and volunteers are out there doing an excellent job, dealing with many difficult and challenging situations.”

Mr Maxwell added that his role was now to help give the county the “best possible policing service”.

But the Chief Constable’s assurances failed to convince Tory MP Julian Smith, who had called on him to resign after the hearing and said his position was not “tenable”.

“I have heard what he (Mr Maxwell) has to say and the comments I made still stand,” said Mr Smith, who represents the Skipton and Ripon constituency.

“I will work to ensure that I support strongly the police officers and support staff and represent the needs of my constituents, but my view has not changed.”

Mr Maxwell has also come under pressure to resign from the Labour MP for York Central, Hugh Bayley, who said he should “think seriously about his position”.

Mr Maxwell’s employer, North Yorkshire Police Authority, declined to comment on his statement yesterday.

In a statement issued shortly after the hearing’s conclusion, the authority accused Mr Maxwell of having pursued “spurious legal remedies and unsustainable arguments” to avoid being held to account.

It called on him to “rebuild” the public’s confidence in the force and his reputation.