All 32 London boroughs attended a recent knife crime summit called by the Mayor to agree joint action on tackling violent crime that blights the lives of individuals, families and communities.
The London Knife Crime Summit brought together leaders from local government, the police, civil society, the criminal justice system and the NHS to share best practice and agree action plans for tackling knife crime and other forms of serious violence.
Violent crime has been rising across England and Wales since 2014, yet severe government cuts to police budgets have sent the number of officers per head in London plunging to their lowest in 20 years.
City Hall data shows that in 2010 the Metropolitan Police had 4.1 officers per 1,000 Londoners, yet because of government cuts, that ratio has now dropped to 3.3 officers per 1,000.
The Mayor has invested £138m in the police in the past two years, but warns that the Government must immediately reverse its cuts to police or risk Londoners’ safety.
Sadiq said:
It speaks volumes that every London borough, regardless of political party, has come together for the first time for this summit in a bid to work together and tackle this issue head on.
He added: “Together we must ensure standards are maintained in every borough as part of our collective approach to tackling violence, because the government continues to leave us high and dry by cutting public services and refusing to invest properly in our police service.
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