Dear Editor,
It has been very encouraging to see City Hall recently announce a further £100 million of investment targeted at tackling violence in our capital.
It is particularly welcome that over half of this new funding will go towards addressing the root causes of crime. Building upon the crucial work already being delivered locally through the Mayor’s Young Londoners Fund and Violence Reduction Unit, I hope to see the rollout of more early intervention initiatives in Waltham Forest on the back of this funding.
To be effective in the fight against violent crime, we need a strategy that places a proportionate focus on both enforcement and preventative measures.
This is why it is also positive that the hundreds of millions of pounds of extra investment that the Mayor has put in to the Met, including the £45 million this year, has led to police officer numbers slowly starting to recover. We have also seen the Government finally intervene and pledge that over 1,000 more officers will be on our streets by next year.
However, due to the damage caused by a decade of cuts, which are still yet to be reversed, we need the Government to ensure future funding is in place for the recruitment of at least 6,000 new police officers over the next few years.
Yours,
Jennette Arnold OBE AM
London Assembly Member for North East (Hackney, Islington and Waltham Forest)