Boris Johnson was challenged at the London Assembly today over cuts to the police in the East End.

The Mayor faced questions at City Hall from east London’s Assembly Member John Biggs about police station front-counters being closed.

“Boris didn’t give me a straight answer.” he said later. “I challenged him on the cuts and reminded him of his commitment that no police front-counters would close unless an equivalent replacement had been identified.

He is cutting too far, too fast and is hitting frontline policing.

“Police reductions across London are happening at a time when the Fire Brigade and our hospital A&E departments are also being cut back.”

Closures in Tower Hamlets include three out of six police stations, Bow, Isle of Dogs and Poplar, as well as Bow fire station.

Limehouse police station is also reducing operating hours from 24 hours to daytime only. Soon the only 24-hour police station in London’s East End will be Bethnal Green, if the cuts go ahead.