Your commercial news round-up: Met police, Google, TikTok, banking crisis and rugby

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Trigger warning: this article’s first story contains information about the Metropolitan Police that mentions rape, this may be distressing for some readers. 

This week has been yet another week full of remarkable headlines. From the explosive release of the Casey report, which revealed some worrying truths about London’s police force, to Google’s late entry into the AI chatbot space, this week’s round-up isn’t one to miss. In other news, TikTok is facing bans from the BBC and the UK government, thousands of jobs are at risk following the UBS takeover of Credit Suisse, and Ireland wins its fourth grand slam title. Grab a cup of tea and read on!

• An investigation into the Metropolitan Police has revealed that it’s “institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic”. The report by Lady Louise Casey, commissioned by the Met following the abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by one of its officers in 2021, is described by The Guardian as “one of the most damning of a major British institution”. In its 363 pages, the report describes troubling details of sexual assaults that have been concealed by the Met, revealing that 12% of women in the Met said they’d been harassed or attacked at work.

Commenting on the report, Lady Casey said: “Public respect has fallen to a low point. Londoners who do not have confidence in the Met outnumber those who do, and these measures have been lower amongst black Londoners for years.” The findings have been commented on by a number of significant figures, including:

• Sadiq Khan, mayor of London;
• Sir Mark Rowley, the Met’s commissioner;
• Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour party;
• Suella Braverman, the home secretary; and
• Harriet Wistrich, from the Centre for Women’s Justice.

Rowley and the Met don’t recognise the findings of the report as “institutional” but have accepted Casey’s factual conclusions about racism, misogyny and homophobia in the organisation.

• Google is set to launch its new chatbot, Bard, across the UK and US on Tuesday 28 March, in a bid to compete with Bing Chat and the popular ChatGPT. This move is a natural step for the tech giant, as AI chatbots are becoming increasingly commonplace, despite the inconsistency in the accuracy and utility of their results. Jack Krawczyk, the product lead for Bard, described the service as an “experiment”, saying that “[w]e’re at the very beginning of that pivot from research to reality, and it’s a long arc of technology that we’re about to undergo.” Similarly to its competitors, Bard allows users to type queries and responses in English and is capable of answering detailed questions, giving creative answers and engaging in ‘conversation’. It’ll be interesting to see how (and if) Google, as the latest player in the AI chatbot game, could be used by law firms.
   
• TikTok is causing a stir in both the UK government and BBC, as employees have been told to delete the app from any corporate devices. In governmental terms, the decision brings the UK in line with the US and the European Commission by removing the app from ministers’ and civil servants’ mobile phones. It’s thought that this decision had been made amid fears of sensitive data being accessed by the owner of the app, Chinese internet company ByteDance.

The government’s announcement of a ban “with immediate effect” was made on Thursday by Oliver Dowden, cabinet minister. Meanwhile, the BBC is “urging” staff to delete the app from any devices associated with the company, unless using it for editorial or marketing reasons. According to City AM, the BBC’s decision is a direct result of the new governmental policy. A spokesperson commented: “The BBC takes the safety and security of our systems, data and people incredibly seriously.” That said, the BBC will continue to use the platform to promote its news stories and content.

• Thousands of jobs are at risk in the City following the acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS, an investment banking company. The decision was made following a press conference on Friday 17 March, in which the Swiss President said it was “no longer possible to restore the necessary confidence” in the bank. UBS acquired the bank for £2.65 billion, a sum well below its market value at the time. Credit Suisse employs around 11,000 people in London, including a high number of its investment banking units, which were already facing heavy cuts. The former chief of UBS UK, Mark Yallop, said on BBC Radio 4 that it’s “inevitable that a merger of this sort will result in some further job losses” and it’s been made clear that jobs in the investment banking units of the company may be the first to go.
   
• In lighter sporting news, Ireland secured its fourth Six Nations grand slam after victory over 14-man England in Dublin on Saturday. Around 1.5 million rugby fans tuned in to watch Ireland's Six Nations win over England on RTE/ BBC Two on Saturday evening. This is the first time Ireland has won a grand slam in Dublin, with The Guardian commenting that “the weight of history was increasingly tangible” for the Irish team. The question remains, will Ireland be strong contender for victory at the World Cup in October? We’ll have to see.

Check the News every Thursday for this weekly commercial news round-up. 

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