Mayor of London Announces Further Police Investments After Recent Stabbing Sprees

Mayor of London Announces Further Police Investments After Recent Stabbing Sprees.

KNIFE crimes, stabbings and even a crossbow attack have been terrorising the UK’s capital in recent weeks with more than ten stabbings even taking place in one day.

On February 5, ten stabbings took place in the London Borough of Croydon in the space of two hours. Police were called to five reports of stabbings, in which one man is known to have been killed and ten people injured.

As a result, the Metropolitan Police invoked additional stop and search powers for 24 hours.

On February 14, an 18-year-old was left fighting for his life in hospital after he was shot with a crossbow bolt at Abbey Wood station at around 10pm.

However, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today (February 16) announced his intention to invest a further £30 million (€34 million) – bringing his investment in policing to £1.08 billion (€1,235 billion) – to ensure that more than a thousand Met police officers funded by City Hall will continue to patrol the streets of the capital for the next four years.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Violent crime had been increasing across the country and in London since 2014, while serious youth violence had been going up since 2013.

“We’ve worked hard to tackle violence in our city, and it started to fall well before the pandemic hit and has continued to do so. But I am not content or complacent, we still have a long way to go.

“If we are to see the long-term reductions in violence that we all want to see in our city, we must continue to tackle the underlying causes of crime, such as poverty, deprivation and lack of opportunities for young Londoners.

“I’m doing everything I can from City Hall to reduce violence, but it’s clear we still have huge financial challenges ahead because the Government has implemented a new era of austerity on public services in London. Ministers must now match my commitment to tackling this issue and fully refund City Hall and the Met for all the lost income and money spent tackling the pandemic.”

However, this announcement has drawn some criticism online with users viewing this as no more than a PR stunt. One user of Twitter wrote: “So let’s get this right, while knife and violent crime has soared, and far too many lives have been lost due to it during his time as Mayor. Now, just when there is an election to win Sadiq Khan announces extra funding… Why not last year? Why not the year before? Oh yeah PR.”

So lets get this right, while knife and violent crime has soared, and far too many lives have been lost due to it during his time as Mayor. Now, just when there is an election to win @SadiqKhan announces extra funding… Why not last year? Why not the year before? Oh yeah PR https://t.co/klvxkrX8Gp

— Alistair MacLeòid (@Al_Mc72) February 16, 2021

Also on February 14, a 16-year-old was rushed to hospital after being stabbed in broad daylight in Brockwell Park in Brixton.

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