What was the impact of the 1829 Metropolitan Police Act?
… to be, even after Peel’s reforms of the 1820s. As Home Secretary, he undertook a refurbishment of the prisons and also a large scale reform of the penal code. Eventually prisons did improve although much of the pioneering work was done by people such as Sir Samuel Romily and Elizabeth Fry. Debate about the creation of a standing police force in England raged during the early part of the 19th century. Confronted with political objections and fears of potential abuse Robert Peel (later Sir Robert Peel) sponsored the first successful bill creating a bureaucratic police force in England. “The Metropolitan Police Act 1829 was an Act of Parliament passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act established the Metropolitan Police Service of London, replacing the numerous local constables and officials.” The Act began in 1828 when Peel as Home Secretary secured a select committee to enquire into …
