2023-24 MOPAC Annual Report

The safety of Londoners is the Mayor’s first priority, and in 2023-24 the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) continued to deliver key priorities from the Mayor's Police and Crime Plan 2022-2025. This plan aims to increase Londoners' sense of safety by: 

• reducing and preventing violence

• increasing trust and confidence

• better supporting victims

• protecting people from exploitation and harm.

• According to Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) data, comparing the 12-month period to May 2016 and the 12 months to January 2024:

  • London homicides fell by 3 per cent

  • the number of young people injured with knives fell by 19 per cent

  • gun crime fell by 19 per cent

  • burglary fell by 18 per cent.

• Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show that violent crime rates are lower in London than the rest of England and Wales. In the twelve months to December 2023, there were 28.4 per 1,000 violence against person offences in the Met area, below England & Wales's average (34 per 1,000 population).

• Following Baroness Casey’s review publication into MPS culture and standards, Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley published his New Met for London reform plan in July 2023. In it, he sets out priority activity areas to achieve less crime, more trust and higher policing standards.

• MOPAC and the MPS agreed a £4.4bn budget for financial year 2024-25, supporting Police and Crime Plan ambitions, as well as those in the New Met for London Plan.   

• The London Policing Board (LPB) was established by the Mayor in response to one of Baroness Casey’s MPS review recommendations. LPB members bring a variety of skills, insights and experiences, supporting the Mayor to oversee and support the MPS, while improving openness and transparency when holding the Met Commissioner to account. The Board met publicly, in full, three times during 2023-24, with an additional three Committee meetings. At these sessions, the Board considered issues including public trust and confidence, protest policing and the MPS workforce.

• The Mayor proactively brought in His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS), providing enhanced oversight and scrutiny to areas of concern. This includes inspecting errors identified in the Stephen Port police investigation, which the Commissioner accepted the findings and recommendations of. In late 2023, HMICFRS reported on another inspection commissioned by the Mayor, into how the MPS handles criminal and sexual child exploitation cases. They found two immediate accelerated causes of concern, and a further one at time of final report publish. Bringing these issues to light has let the MPS prioritise and drive needed improvements. HMICFRS and MOPAC will continue overseeing delivery.

• In May 2023 MOPAC worked closely with the Rt Hon Harriet Harman MP, producing draft legislation to encourage Government action on reforming police misconduct and performance frameworks. The Home Office eventually adopted many suggested proposals, including: 

  • automatically suspending police officers charged with indictable offences 

  • creating statutory officer requirements to hold vetting – supporting legislative routeways to dismiss officers failing this 

  • Chief Constable appeal rights 

  • delivering new, robust guidance on discharging probationers (Regulation 13) 

  • streamlining unsatisfactory performance procedures (UPP). 

• MOPAC continued to operate its Independent Custody Visiting (ICV) scheme, where volunteers visit police custody suites unannounced to check service standards and detainee welfare. In 2023-24, ICVs carried out 508 visits, seeing 1801 detainees. 

• A MOPAC-funded community scrutiny pilot launched in Hackney in July 2023, with a diverse local group meeting monthly to hold the police to account for a wider range of powers and practices. MOPAC wants to make this a collaborative process, working with local authority colleagues, and local voluntary/community organisations, and communities. MOPAC’s Evidence and Insight team will evaluate the pilot.

• The MPS has made dramatic improvements in call handling, backed with £2.5m in MOPAC funding. In January 2024 the Met answered 91 per cent of 999 calls within 10 seconds - above the national 90 per cent target.

• ONS Crime Survey for England and Wales data shows public MPS confidence has stabilised since September 2022. Latest available ONS data (year ending June 2023) shows public MPS confidence (51 per cent) was higher than England & Wales average (50 per cent), as well as the most similar forces – Greater Manchester (40 per cent), West Yorkshire (44 per cent) and West Midlands (47 per cent).

• Latest MOPAC Public Attitude Survey (PAS) data from 2023-24 quarter 2 found the proportion of respondents worried about local crime fell by 9 per cent over the last year, to 41 per cent. The proportion of respondents worried about local anti-social behaviour fell by 14 per cent, to 36 per cent. Corresponding falls were seen for worry about local knife crime (down by 6 per cent in the last year, to 49 per cent ) and worry about local gun crime (down by 29 per cent in the last year, to 17 per cent).   

• The Mayor’s Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy delivery continued in 2023-24, championing a public health approach encouraging all Londoners to play their part to end the violence against women and girls (VAWG) epidemic. Highlights include:

  • A further £15m investment to continue and strengthen the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation (DASA) programme in London, which provides safe accommodation and wrap-around support for domestic abuse survivors and their families. Run by the GLA and MOPAC, and funded by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), DASA has already supported over 70 Londonwide projects since launching in December 2021. 

  • MOPAC convened NHS London, Integrated Care Board, Directors of Public Health, and local authority community safety and safeguarding lead partners. Together, they signed up to various pledges tackling misogyny, sexual harassment and VAWG through services and in-health environments. These help prevent VAWG across London.

  • The Mayor announced £3m additional funding for grassroots projects delivering vital services for women and girls experiencing domestic abuse/sexual violence. 

• The Mayor and Commissioner convened a City Hall roundtable, with world-leading mobile phone manufacturer and network representatives (including Apple, Samsung and Google). This discussed how police, City Hall and the mobile phone industry can work better together, finding the most effective mobile phone crime deterrent – a significant, growing London issue. 

• The MOPAC GPS tagging crime scheme (launched 2019) surpassed 1,500 tagged offenders in 2023-24. Electronically monitoring knife crime and domestic abuse offenders on prison release ensures they comply with their sentence terms, protecting their victims and putting onus on perpetrator behaviour change. 

• The Mayor’s Shared Endeavour Fund continued supporting cross-London community projects tackling hate, intolerance, extremism and radicalisation. In 2023-24 it provided funding for 22 projects, with up to 50,000 beneficiaries. Additional delivery was funded after the tragic Israel terrorist attack on 7 October 2023, and ensuing humanitarian crisis in Gaza to counter increasing antisemitism and Islamophobia levels.  

• MOPAC made hadway in overseeing multi-agency progress against reccommendations in Lord Toby Harris’ latest London terrorist attack preparedness and response report. Much good progress happened, and 57 recommendations were closed by MOPAC, with 100 further recommendations currently being considered to close. London Assembly members receivied a one-year on publishing report was sent to London Assembly Members during 2023-24.

• MOPAC investment supported expanding Project ADDER in 2023-24. ADDER is a police, council and health service partnership helping drug users from the criminal justice system into treatment and recovery services. It began operating in one part of London in 2021-22 and is now expanding cross-capital.

• The Home Office and MOPAC provided £5m each in 2023-24 to fund Operation Yamata. This tackles intra-London drugs lines, preventing associated homicide and serious violence by dismantling Class A drugs supply networks. Operation Yamata works with Project ADDER, supressing drugs supply and reducing demand.

• The Mayor committed £3m to support improvements in the way the MPS cares for crime victims. This helped support new initiatives including My Met Service - an instant service for victims to submit instant officer feedback via QR code, email or SMS.

• The Mayor pledged an additional £250k funding for the Community Alliance To Combat Hate (CATCH) Partnership. This eight-organisation partnership (including GALOP) supports victims of all hate crimes – from racism and religious discrimination to anti-LGBTQ+ abuse. This funding is additional to £2m CATCH already received from MOPAC, enabling it to reach over 3,500 hate crime victims.  

• The Mayor announced £170,000 funding for a dedicated London cybersecurity expert team, better protecting Londoners from online harm. The new investment is part of a one-year pilot boosting (award-winning charity) The Cyber Helpline’s reach and capacity. It has already helped 600,000 people nationally since 2020, directly supporting over 40,000 victims.

• MOPAC’s Evidence and Insight Unit published further evaluation and research reports, including a ground-breaking study by UCL showing how the cost-of-living crisis has impacted London's crime and safety.