London Assembly Member Murad Qureshi AM has called on the Mayor to rethink his cuts to neighbourhood policing after new research found that 39% of people in Westminster do not believe the Met have a visible police presence in the area.
The data, drawn from the Met’s recently launched ‘Confidence Comparator’ found that just 61% of local residents felt police were providing a visible policing presence in Westminster with some areas of the borough seen to be worse than others. In Westminster North, this figure was as low as 58%. There is a similar picture forming across the Capital, with 47% of Londoners saying the police do not have a visible presence in their respective areas.
The figures have sparked criticism of the Mayor of London’s decision to cut back neighbourhood policing teams from six uniformed officers to only two, with Murad Qureshi AM calling on the Mayor to put more police officers back into boroughs. Since the current Government came to power 4,333 police officers and PCSOs have been lost from London’s streets, including 729 from Westminster. The Mayor commissioned a review of the new neighbourhood policing units in July 2014 but has so far refused to release the review’s findings despite concerns that the new setup is leaving neighbourhood policing stretched. The worrying confidence figures come only a week after it was revealed that violent crime in the capital rose 22% last year, also rising by 22% in Westminster.
London Assembly Member Murad Qureshi AM said: “With 729 fewer uniformed officers on Westminster’s streets since the Government came to power it’s no surprise that many local people do not feel that there is a visible police presence in Westminster.
“It’s now very likely that the Mayor will miss his target to increase public confidence by 20% and it’s not hard to see why. The cuts to police numbers and the Mayor’s decision to dismantle neighbourhood policing teams have clearly been noticed by people in Westminster and indeed across the Capital. It’s increasingly clear that we need to see more officers back on the beat in our local neighbourhoods.”
ENDS
Notes
Figures on Visibility and Confidence from the Mayor of London can be found here. Figures were drawn from the Met’s ‘Confidence Comparator’ which is available here
The ‘Confidence Comparator’ found that when asked ‘how well do you think the Metropolitan Police provide a visible patrolling presence?’ just 53% of Londoners answered they felt their police were doing “well” or “to some extent” providing a visible policing presence in their neighbourhood.
Percentage scores for confidence in the police are derived from a rolling yearly questionnaire of over 12,000 Londoners as part of the Public Attitudes Survey (PAS).
Figures on Police Numbers from the Mayor of London can be found at: London Datastore
Murad Qureshi is a Labour Londonwide Assembly Member.
For more information please contact London Assembly Labour Group press officer, Alison Orlandi, on 07795 616 832. Number not for publication.