The crime rate in London was 100.9 crime offences per thousand people for 2022/23 reporting year, compared with 92.8 in the previous year. Between 2015/16 and 2019/20 the crime rate in the UK capital increased in every reporting year, with the sudden drop seen in the 2019/20 reporting year due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing a sharp reduction in certain types of crime such as robbery and theft.
Almost 888,000 offences in 2022/23
The number of crimes reported by the police in London was 887,870 in 2022/23, compared with 912,487 in 2019/20, the last comparable reporting year. Although this was a slight decline, it was still much higher than the 743,728 in 2015/16, and violent crime in particular remains at elevated levels. One positive is that the number of homicide offences in 2022/23 fell to its lowest figure since 2016/17, at 112 offences. Additionally, the Metropolitan Police force area has a lower crime rate than many of the UK's other major police forces such as West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, and Merseyside.
Police recruitment drive ends era of cuts
The rise in crime in London happened alongside a decline in both personnel and funding for the London Metropolitan Police. Compared with 2010 for example, there were around 3,000 fewer police officers in 2018, while annual funding was reduced to around 3.3 billion pounds between 2013/14 and 2018/19, compared with 3.62 billion in 2012/13. These cuts were due to the policy of austerity that was implemented by the UK government during that time period, but this has recently been replaced by pledges to increase spending and to recruit more police. In 2023/24, the budget for the Metropolitan Police was 4.53 billion pounds, while the number of officers in 2022 increased to 33,984.
Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23
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Office for National Statistics (UK). (July 20, 2023). Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved July 03, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/
Office for National Statistics (UK). "Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23." Chart. July 20, 2023. Statista. Accessed July 03, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/
Office for National Statistics (UK). (2023). Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: July 03, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/
Office for National Statistics (UK). "Crime Rate per 1,000 Population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23." Statista, Statista Inc., 20 Jul 2023, https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/
Office for National Statistics (UK), Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/ (last visited July 03, 2024)
Crime rate per 1,000 population in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 [Graph], Office for National Statistics (UK), July 20, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/380963/london-crime-rate/