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What funding pressures lie ahead for the Mayor’s blue light services?

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Created on
07 December 2022
  • In its 2023-24 budget, the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) remains committed to its target of 6,000 total additional police officers over the coming years – despite only receiving funding for approximately 4,500 officers.
  • Total reserves of the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) are £569.4 million. Despite the intention to utilise these reserves in the last five years, these reserves have continued to increase.
  • The London Fire Brigade (LFB) faces several cost pressures in its 2023-24 budget, which it is largely funding through reserves. This risks the longer-term sustainability of its finances.
  • The Brigade is currently overspending on its overtime pay for staff, and this is projected to be a cost pressure for the organisation in its 2023-24 budget.

The Mayor oversees a total budget of £19 billion and is responsible for setting the budget for the Greater London Authority (GLA) and its functional bodies, including MOPAC, MPS and LFB.

Tomorrow, the London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee will meet to question MOPAC, the Met and LFB on their budgets for 2023-24. The guests are:

From 10am: Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and Metropolitan Police Service

  • Sophie Linden, Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime
  • Sir Mark Rowley QPM, Commissioner, MPS
  • Lisa Kitto, Interim Chief Finance Officer, MOPAC
  • Ian Percival, Finance Director, MPS
  • Enver Enver, Assistant Director Group Finance and Performance, GLA

From 12pm: London Fire Brigade

  • Baroness Twycross, Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience
  • Andy Roe, Commissioner of LFB
  • Mostaque Ahmed, Director of Corporate Services, LFB
  • Enver Enver, Assistant Director of Group Finance and Performance, GLA

The meeting will take place on Thursday, 8 December 2022 from 10am, in The Chamber at City Hall, Kamal Chunchie Way, London, E16 1ZE.

Media and members of the public are invited to attend.

The meeting can also be viewed LIVE or later via webcast or YouTube

Follow us @LondonAssembly


Notes to editors

Notes for editors:

  1. Full agenda papers.
  2. Len Duvall AM, Deputy Chair of the Budget and Performance Committee, is available for interview.
  3. Find out more about the work of the Budget and Performance Committee.
  4. As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor

For more details, please contact Emma Bowden in the Assembly Media Office on 07849 303 897. For out-of-hours media enquiries, call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the London Assembly duty press officer.

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