The Metropolitan Police has launched a consultation that could require officers to declare their membership in the Freemasons, marking a significant potential shift in the force's transparency policies. Scotland Yard, Britain's largest police force, is considering adding the centuries-old fraternal organization to its existing declarable associations policy following concerns raised internally about how Masonic membership might affect police operations. The move represents the first serious effort by the Met to formally address long-standing questions about Freemasonry's influence within police ranks.

Freemasonry, which has existed in Britain for hundreds of years, requires members to swear an oath of loyalty to the organization and pledge support to fellow Masons. The secretive single-sex groups operate on principles of mutual assistance and confidentiality. The Metropolitan Police currently does not collect information about how many officers belong to Masonic lodges and has never prohibited officers from joining the organization. However, the force's existing policy already requires officers and staff to declare any association with individuals or groups that might compromise their integrity or damage the police service's reputation.

The push for greater transparency around Freemason membership stems directly from recommendations in the 2021 Daniel Morgan Independent Panel report. The comprehensive investigation examined the Met's handling of the unsolved 1987 murder of private detective Daniel Morgan, who was killed with an axe in a south-east London pub car park. Multiple inquiries over decades into the 37-year-old father-of-two's death uncovered allegations of police corruption, with the 2021 report specifically identifying officers' Freemason membership as "a source of recurring suspicion and mistrust in the investigations."

Under the current declarable associations policy, Metropolitan Police personnel must disclose relationships with individuals who have criminal convictions, those dismissed from policing, and people in certain professions including private investigation and journalism. Commander Simon Messinger confirmed the force is now consulting on whether to add Freemasonry to this list. The consultation comes amid ongoing efforts to rebuild public trust in the police service while balancing officers' rights to private association against potential conflicts of interest in police work.

Two people were killed and three others seriously injured in an attack outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester on Thursday morning. The incident occurred in the Crumpsall area, approximately four miles from Manchester city center, during Yom Kippur - the holiest day in the Jewish religious calendar. Greater Manchester Police confirmed the fatalities following what they described as a "major incident" involving both a vehicle and knife attack.

The suspect, a male, was shot by armed police officers at 9:38 AM and is believed to be deceased, though authorities noted his death "cannot currently be confirmed due to safety issues" after discovering "suspicious items on his person." Police were initially called to the scene at 9:30 AM following reports of a car being driven toward members of the public and a stabbing. Among the injured was a man believed to be a security guard at the synagogue.

Authorities have deployed multiple specialized units to the scene, including anti-terrorism personnel, military representatives, and bomb disposal teams. Greater Manchester Police activated the "Plato" protocol, which is used for large-scale attacks including "mobile terrorist attacks." A large number of worshippers who were inside the synagogue at the time of the incident were initially held inside while the immediate area was secured, but have since been evacuated.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed being "shocked" by the incident and is cutting short his visit to Denmark, where he was attending a European Political Community meeting, to chair a government Cobra committee meeting in London. The Prime Minister's office confirmed that "additional police assets" will be deployed at synagogues across the country following the attack. Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham stated that the attacker is believed to have died in the incident.