The officer was informed that he will be subject to disciplinary action together with three colleagues — a detective sergeant, a uniformed sergeant and a constable — after covert video recordings were made of them at their police station in Nottingham. The other officers are accused of also using “inappropriate language” in private conversations. All four have been taken off frontline duties that might bring them into contact with members of the public while they await formal decisions as to their futures. The covert taping was being carried out by Nottinghamshire police to investigate alleged corruption by another member of staff. The officers facing disciplinary action are not suspected of any criminal activity and the fact that their comments were recorded was a coincidence.

However, the force’s professional standards department decided last year to place all four officers on so-called “regulation nine” notices signalling disciplinary action even though no complaints had been received from other staff or members of the public.