Londoners deserve to know extent of police officer reduction

With the Metropolitan Police Service confirming there is a real risk of a reduction of 2,300 police officers in London due to a £450m funding gap,¹ the Mayor and the Met have been urged to set out clearly what level of officer reduction Londoners can expect for 2025-26.

The London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee has today written to the Mayor of London regarding the draft 2025-26 budgets for the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) and the Met.

The letter also asks the Mayor to clarify what impact potential savings will have on Met services and activities, and for MOPAC to provide a further update on its Estate Strategy.

Recommendations include:

• The Met should provide an updated proposal on the level of officer reductions it expects in 2025-26, reflecting the additional funding secured in the January Consolidated Budget. It should also share its analysis of how it will achieve any planned reductions with the Committee.
• In future years, the Met should publish the underlying assumptions of Police Officer and Staff numbers as part of its initial budget submission. These should then also be included in the Mayor’s Consultation Budget.
• The Final Draft Consolidated Budget 2025-26 should include:
  A) Further evidence on how MOPAC and the Met intend to achieve the level of required savings and efficiencies next year.
  B) A summary of the likely operational impact of any proposed savings and efficiency programmes and evidence of the prioritisation process of funding of all Met activities.
• MOPAC should commit to sharing the final Estate Strategy with this Committee by the end of March 2025. It should also set out in a letter how it expects to address the funding gap in the strategy.

Chairman of the London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee, Neil Garratt AM, said:

“The Mayor has a substantial budget of over £21 billion, so it is essential that he is open and transparent with Londoners on how that money is being spent.

“Having seen the Commissioner’s comments regarding a potential reduction of 2,300 police officers in London, and this being confirmed by the Met’s Chief Finance Officer, Londoners are rightly concerned about the impact this will have on the city.

“Keeping Londoners safe is a priority for us all, which is why we are calling on the Mayor and the Met to set out clearly the level of officer reductions expected for 2025-26.

“There are also concerns around the £450m funding gap that has been highlighted by the Met Commissioner for 2025-26.

“Both the Mayor and the Met must set out clearly how this level of savings will be made, what impact this will have on police prioritisation of services, and assure Londoners that the Met will have appropriate levels of funding to carry out its work.”