'It's not his job to be offended': Legal expert challenges Cheshire Police chief's 'striking' decision to accuse MP David Davis of misleading parliament over Lucy Letby conviction comments

Published: 12:13, 14 April 2026 | Updated: 12:16, 14 April 2026 Joshua Rozenberg KC has questioned the head of Cheshire Police's 'unusual' decision to write a letter accusing former Cabinet minister Sir David Davis of misleading parliament with comments about his force's investigation into killer nurse Lucy Letby.  In a parliamentary adjournment debate on March 26, Sir David alleged that Cheshire Police made 'egregious failures' during Operation Hummingbird, their years-long investigation into the deaths of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital. In a strongly worded letter dated April 8, seen by the Daily Mail, Chief Constable Mark Roberts hit back at Sir David, saying the MP's comments were 'materially inaccurate and misleading.' The letter, sent to Cheshire MPs, the Police and Crime Commissioner and Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, alleged that Sir David had failed to check 'basic facts', demanding he correct the record 'without delay'. Joshua Rozenberg KC has questioned the head of Cheshire Police's 'unusual' decision to write a letter accusing former Cabinet minister Sir David Davis of misleading parliament Sir David alleged that Cheshire Police made 'egregious failures' during Operation Hummingbird, their investigation into the deaths of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital Rozenberg said it was 'not very seemly' for a senior police officer to enter the public debate surrounding Letby's convictions in this way Speaking to the Daily Mail's Trial podcast, legal commentator Rozenberg said it was 'not very seemly' for a senior police officer to enter the public debate surrounding Letby's convictions in this way. 'This is a very striking letter', Rozenberg noted. 'What it demonstrates is that the Chief Constable is pretty cross at what he's heard in this debate. Fed up with the criticism of his force. 'Roberts thinks he's done everything by the book. That they got the right result, that the legal process has operated properly. But, an awful lot of people don't. 'Now, they may be right, they may be wrong. The idea that a neonatal nurse would murder babies is such an appalling prospect, it's not surprising people don't want to believe it. 'It's not Roberts' job to be cross though, it's not his job to be offended. It's not his job to be annoyed by public criticism. 'His job is to investigate crimes, to present evidence and ultimately, to allow the courts to decide where truth lies and justice rests.' Sir David has been an outspoken critic of Letby's convictions, believing her to be the victim of a massive miscarriage of justice To hear a full breakdown of Sir David's claims and Roberts' rebuttal, search for The Trial, wherever you get your podcasts Sir David has been an outspoken critic of Letby's convictions, believing her to be the victim of a massive miscarriage of justice. During the March debate, he claimed Cheshire Police had tunnel-visioned in on the nurse as their prime suspect, relied too heavily on a single medical expert and failed to pursue alternative explanations for the babies' deaths. However, as Roberts points out in his letter, many of these allegations do not hold up to scrutiny. Multiple medical experts across different specialities were involved in the investigation, and Cheshire Police spent 13 months examining the babies' deaths before Letby was even designated a suspect. Rozenberg noted that while Roberts had every right to rebut Davis, selectively sending the letter to certain MPs in the knowledge it would find its way into the public domain was a 'curious' move for a police force to make. 'Davis is right to make his concerns known. The Chief Constable is right to reply,' Rozenberg said. 'But it would be better if they spoke to one another rather than doing it through the media.' To hear a full breakdown of Sir David's claims and Roberts' rebuttal, search for The Trial, wherever you get your podcasts. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.