The number of knife or sharp instrument offences recorded by the police in London rose to approximately 12,786 in 2022/23, compared with 11,122 in the previous year. This was the highest number of knife crime offences reported in London since 2019/20, when there were 15,928. Between 2015/16 and 2019/20, knife crime in London increased yearly, with a particularly large increase occurring between 2016/16 and 2017/18.
A wider trend
The increase in knife crime witnessed in London has occurred alongside a general increase in overall crime throughout England and Wales. In 2022/23, there were approximately 6.74 million crime offences across England and Wales, compared with just over four million ten years earlier. During a similar time period, the number of knife homicides also increased, and reached 282 in 2021/22, compared with 186 in 2014/15. Due to strict gun laws in the United Kingdom, firearms are rarely used to commit homicides, with knives or other sharp instruments being used in over 40 percent of homicides in 2021/22.
Acid and moped attacks
While knife crime in London has certainly been given a lot of attention by the British media, the increase in acid and moped attacks during the same time period also generated many headlines. In 2017 for example there were 472 acid attacks recorded by the Metropolitan Police, compared with just 51 in 2007. Moped crime also reached high levels in 2017, with both types of crime decreasing somewhat by 2019. Although overall crime in London continued to rise until 2019/20, this fell back during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2022/23, there were fewer crimes committed than in 2019/20.
Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23
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Office for National Statistics (UK). (July 20, 2023). Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved July 27, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/
Office for National Statistics (UK). "Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23." Chart. July 20, 2023. Statista. Accessed July 27, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/
Office for National Statistics (UK). (2023). Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: July 27, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/
Office for National Statistics (UK). "Number of Police Recorded Knife or Sharp Instrument Offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23." Statista, Statista Inc., 20 Jul 2023, https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/
Office for National Statistics (UK), Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/ (last visited July 27, 2024)
Number of police recorded knife or sharp instrument offences in London from 2015/16 to 2022/23 [Graph], Office for National Statistics (UK), July 20, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/864736/knife-crime-in-london/