No cuts will be made to neighbourhood policing despite a “stretch in the system”, the chief of the Metropolitan Police has confirmed.
Sir Mark Rowley, who heads the country’s largest police force, has previously warned of “eye-watering” cuts to the force’s spending this year.
But speaking during a visit to the Met’s new police hub in Woodford, Sir Mark confirmed he planned to “strengthen” neighbourhood policing.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley with the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, Kaya Comer-Schwartz, during a walkabout in Woodford, east London (Yui Mok/PA)
He told the PA news agency: “We’re working still through the end stages of our budget … When we’ve got all of that and we’ve done the maths and worked it all out then we’ll be able to give the final number.
“In February, we’ll be really clear with London about the effects of it.
“But neighbourhood policing is not going to be cut. This is critical to our strategy to protect London, to build trust and reduce crime.
“So people won’t see these officers being taken away. I want to strengthen it as far as I can do because of the effect they make locally.”
Sir Mark previously warned of cuts as the force “desperately” tries to keep a significant number of police officers.
In November, he told BBC Radio 4’s Political Thinking With Nick Robinson that he was “deeply troubled by the situation” the force “appears to be heading towards”.
The proposed cuts come amid a record high in shoplifting offences in England and Wales, with nearly half a million recorded by police in the previous year.
A total of 492,914 offences were logged by forces in the year to September 2024, up 23% from 402,220 in the previous 12 months.
The figure is the highest since current records began in the year to March 2003, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
When asked on Thursday, Sir Mark declined to comment specifically on shoplifting but said the Met was serious “about all types of crime”.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley attended the opening of a new police hub (Yui Mok/PA)
He added: “Clearly, there’s a stretch in the system.
“We’ve got some fantastic crime figures. For example, injury violence is going down very significantly this year in London. It’s a better picture that it is on average in the country.
“There are many areas where Londoners are very safe. There are some areas we are looking to improve. I don’t dispute that. But Londoners can feel safe and they can feel safer as we put officers close to them in communities in facilities like this.”
Sir Mark was joined on his visit by London’s Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime Kaya Comer-Schwartz who added: “I think sadly we know that there’s been a huge gap left from the previous government and we’re trying to work together to hold our communities through that … Londoners want to be safer and feel safer.
“That’s what we’re prioritising.”