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Lord Ian Blair, Former Met Police Commissioner, Dies at 72

Tributes from policing leaders together with academic colleagues recall his crisis leadership during the July 7 attacks alongside debates over police accountability

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Lord Blair became a crossbench peer two years after he stepped down from the most senior job in British policing over disagreements with Boris Johnson
Ian Blair, former Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has died aged 72 (Photo: Tim Ireland/PA)

Overview

  • Christ Church College at the University of Oxford confirmed his death on July 11 and extended condolences to his family
  • Blair led the Metropolitan Police from February 2005 to October 2008, overseeing the response to the bombings that killed 52 people in July 2005
  • Officers shot dead Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell station two weeks after the attacks, a case of mistaken identity that resulted in the Met’s 2006 health and safety conviction
  • Under pressure from Mayor Boris Johnson’s loss of confidence, Blair resigned in October 2008 after a bitter showdown over his leadership
  • He was ennobled as Lord Blair of Boughton in 2010 and served as a crossbench peer, influencing discussions on policing reform until his death