£1bn cuts in policing slammed by East End MP Rushanara Ali

Cuts in police numbers have been condemned by an MP in London’s crime-ridden East End after latest government figures reveal spending has shrunk by £1 billion in the past three years.

There are now 17 per cent fewer constables and support officers in the Met’s Tower Hamlets division alone, warns Bethnal Green & Bow MP Rushanara Ali.

“The cuts have resulted in the lowest number of officers in a decade,” she said. “It is extremely worrying that we now have 163 fewer in Tower Hamlets at a time when crime is increasing across the East End.

“We’ve had a dramatic nine per cent increase in crime since 2010, which is making it harder to catch criminals and deliver justice.

“Victims are being denied justice with more and more criminals getting away with it.”

The MP, who has voiced her opposition in Parliament to the cuts, is calling for the government to rethink next year’s budget skimming, pointing out that 30,000 fewer crimes were solved last year, including 7,000 violent crimes.

The reduction, she pointed out, was putting communities “at risk” with fewer officers, fewer responses to 999 calls and less visible policing on the streets.