OUR capital city is under threat from a growing underworld that the police appear unable to combat effectively.
Reputation is everything and London’s losing it.
A prominent Indian business leader, Devin Naran, told the FT that his compatriots have put off London visits, saying, “police not responding is a matter of concern”.
And let’s not forget these weekly pro-Palestinian marches that for many, not least the Jewish community, are intimidatory.
They are also having a detrimental effect on the police.
One Met officer told the Telegraph this week that all leave has been cancelled to police these protests.
Six months after 7 October, officers are still absent from their regular beats, while 36 London police stations have closed on the Mayor Khan’s watch.
This from a man who claims that crime in London is no worse than elsewhere in the country.
I am not keen on using too many statistics as they tend to turn the reader off, but in this case I think they help.
A Survation poll this week found that one in five Londoners was attacked or threatened with violence in the last five years.
The ONS recorded 13,503 blade offences in London in the year to the end of June; that’s 21 per cent up in 12 months and 30 per cent since the pandemic.
Then there are the muggings and thefts.
An organisation representing 600 local businesses, found that ‘thefts from a person’ in the West End tripled to 2,806 in the two years to 2023.
Met Police data shows London street crime soaring by 27 per cent over the last 12 months, with moped and e-bike gangs known to be prolific culprits.
We need to see more police on the street, deterring and reassuring.
It’s unacceptable for crime to win in our capital city.