Andrew Dismore

 

The key issues have been the borough mergers (and impact especially on emergency calls); police public access and engagement strategy (including station closures) and the Met Police funding crisis.

 

I have prepared a police funding briefing update

 

At this month’s MQT I questioned the Mayor on the mergers and police finance (video and transcripts of exchanges below).

 

We also had the Mayor to question at this Month’s Police and Crime Committee, where these issues came  up again, as well as counter terrorism in light of Parsons Green; and the investigation into Grenfell Tower. I will circulate the transcript when it is available

 

On the mergers, please also find attached the Met’s progress report briefing on BCU. The most up to date account I have is that Camden and Islington  merged BCU is now meeting the met average for the  I call targets for this month, but it is clear that the performance deteriorated badly after the merger. I have asked for S call statistics. The Mayor has  said there will be no roll out till the problems are resolved; and he has promised me details of the criteria against which the ‘pathfinders’ will be assessed. He has also said that they may review the proposed configurations for the rest of London, but the driver is the financial position of the Met. I continue to argue that the proposed Barnet/Harrow/Brent configuration needs to be reconsidered.

 

On the access and engagement strategy, there is still time to make your representations, if you have not done so here.

 

I have attended the public meetings in both boroughs to discuss the plans. I am working up my own submission, based on what came out of the local discussions and my own views: I will include a link to this in my next report.

 

The financial position remains very difficult; and has been worsened by the Government’s failure to fund the higher pay rise for police officers than was budgeted for (2% instead of 1%, though still below inflation)  See some of the details in my questioning of the Mayor below.

 

MQT : oral questions Sept 17

 

Police borough mergers

 

video of exchanges, transcript  below

 

How are you consulting Londoners about your plans to close police front counters and change local policing in the capital?

 

Andrew Dismore AM: Thank you, Deputy Chairman. I have raised with you before the local concerns over the mergers in Camden and Islington, including poor community engagement, poor response to 101 calls and, most importantly, the worsening response times to emergency “I” and emergency “S” calls for help. You rightly said in response to a written question that the rollout across the capital will not happen until the merger problems are sorted out.

Can you say when the evaluation is going to take place and confirm it will be carried out on published and objective criteria?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): My understanding is that the evaluation of the pathfinders we are going to do towards the end of this year. It would have been done earlier but for the problems that have been articulated by Assembly Member Desai. You will be aware of the additional increase in resources to resolve the issues. By the way, it would be unfair to say it has been a blanket failure because there have been improvements around dealing with vulnerable people and around some of the other services that were identified by the Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) report. The pathfinders have led to some improvements in services in some areas.

However, clearly, as was referred to by Assembly Member Desai, response times were a big source of concern for everyone and we still need to address those. The idea is that towards the end of this year the Commissioner and the Deputy Mayor will evaluate the pathfinders before deciding on how to proceed.

 

Andrew Dismore AM: Will that be on objective and published criteria?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): Can I write to you about that? I am not sure what the criteria are, but they should always be criteria that reassure the public rather than a source of not reassuring the public. I will write to you to let you know exactly what the criteria is and when we expect to evaluate that by.

 

Andrew Dismore AM: Thank you.

 

Police funding

 

video of exchanges, transcript  below

 

What has been the Government response to your request for additional funding for the Met?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): Thank you for this question. It allows me once again to  discuss one of the more pressing issues in my mayoralty. I have written recently to the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd [MP], to raise the issue once again, as I have done repeatedly since I became the Mayor. I will continue to engage with the Government in the run-up to the autumn budget. I want to thank the Assembly for its cross-party work on the most pressing matter that we face in relation to policing and I am sure any further representations you make ahead of the budget will be very helpful.

 

You will recall that the MPS has already delivered significant savings of more than £600 million over recent years. Front counters have closed, buildings have been sold and almost 3,000 PCSOs and police staff posts have had to be lost. A further £400 million of savings are required over the next four years because the flat cash budget settlement provided by the Government failed to take into account the increasing demand or inflationary pressures on policing. Of the £400 million savings, they have identified £200 million, which has already meant some hard choices and difficult decisions. As I have made clear previously, finding another £200 million

will be very tough.

 

Unfortunately, over the last few years crime in our city has been increasing in volume and complexity. We desperately need the Government to reverse the cuts and provide a real-term increase to MPS budgets. We also need the Government to announce that it is abandoning its funding formula review. We also need the Government to provide the full funding of the National and International Cities Grant to reflect the true additional costs that come with policing the nation’s capital. The Government has been too slow and too quiet on the issue. The MPS is running out time. We have to make decisions on the budgets and workforce now. If Ministers do not act and the current funding arrangements remain, officer numbers may fall

below 30,000 for the first time since 2003.

 

Andrew Dismore AM: Thank you for your answer. That paints a pretty bleak picture unless we actually do get more from the Government. I hope we can all welcome the reports that the Government is finally considering giving the police officers a much-deserved pay rise. Whether it is enough for our hardworking London MPS officers, it is rather debatable, to say the least. The $64,000 question though – and it is rather more than that – is where the money is coming from to fund this pay rise. Has the Government indicated they will meet the cost of the pay rise or will it have to come from the existing over-stretched MPS budget? If so, what will the impact

be on the MPS’s finances?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): On that point, firstly, can I thank you for making the point how hard our police work day in, day out? In fact, the inflation is, roughly speaking, 3%. The announcement from the Government of 2% this year, 1% from next year, that does not appear to be funded. We discovered this  yesterday. My understanding is that the 2% increase will mean an additional cost of about £18 million per year. We have got to find that from a budget that has already got massive problems in it. There is no point the Government announcing a pay increase if they are not going to fund it, in the context where we already have big problems

with our budget in London.

 

Andrew Dismore AM: What would you say to those Conservative London MPs, like the three we have in Barnet, and especially the MP for Chipping Barnet, who says she does not recognise the £400 million shortfall in Government funding, who consistently voted for the central Government budgets that have led to this underfunding crisis in the MPS and who now questions the need to close the police station in Chipping Barnet?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): What always astonishes me is the collective amnesia from Liberal Democrat politicians and Conservative politicians who are responsible for the cuts we have seen over the last seven years. They laugh. Conservative Assembly Members and Liberal Democrat Assembly Members laugh when I have to remind them we have faced, since 2010, £600 million worth of cuts. MPs voted at every budget, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015. Since

2015 we have got to find another £400 million, a £1 billion cut from the MPS budget voted through by the MPs you refer to. At the same time, they say how wonderful – and they are, by the way – our police officers are. At the same time, they vote through a 1% increase only in relation to pay in previous years. We know inflation is 3%, so nobody should be surprised that police officers look aghast at the MPs who are now celebrating a cap being lifted and an increase in their pay of 2%, in the context of there being fewer police officers, fewer police staff, front counters are closing down, police officers being stretched and the prospect of police

numbers in London going to levels we have not seen since 2003.

 

Andrew Dismore AM: You mentioned the national police funding allocation formula, which could be reduced from 2018/19. The estimates were that the MPS stood to lose somewhere between £184 million and £700 million from its yearly budget under the previous version. Have there been any indications from the Government that they will drop this scheme and, if not, what would the outcome of that be?

 

Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London): One of the consequences of the Government calling a General Election in June is not simply the cost – £140 million spent on this General Election, which was not needed – think about the police officers that could have paid for. Also, they have missed the boat for the police funding formula to take place next year, which is good news for us, because we get another year’s worth of grace, which is one way of looking at it. They have not ruled out the police funding formula being changed in subsequent years. My call to the Government is to reverse the cuts, give us the funding that we need, give us the funding that experts say that we need, including the Government experts, but also say once and for all

they will not be changing the police funding formula, which would punish London.

 

MQT written  answers   Night Time Economy Question No: 2017/3679 Andrew Dismore Do you consider residents who live in areas that are subject to considerable night time economy activity to be adequately protected from the negative impacts? Written response from the Mayor Protecting the interests of London’s residents is vital when developing London as a truly 24-hour city. I recently published From Good Night To Great Night, a Vision for London as a 24-Hour City. The safety and wellbeing of residents is at the heart of this vision and is one of the 10 principles that will guide City Hall’s work on the night time economy.   There are a wide range of protections in place at borough level to ensure that residents are not subject to antisocial behaviour, whatever the time of day. Council’s provide these protections through their environmental health, licensing, town centre management and planning functions. Council noise teams operate around the clock, responding to noise complaints, investigating and resolving them.   I plan to introduce a stand-alone Agent of Change policy in my new London Plan. It will put the onus on developers to ensure that residents of new buildings close to existing venues are protected from noise impacts.   In addition, my Night Czar regularly meets London’s residents, for example through her Night Surgeries in boroughs and town centres across the capital. The Chair of my Night Time Commission, Philip Kolvin QC, has set up a Night Time Economy Borough Champions network which includes one councillor and one officer from every local authority. Through this network, best practice is shared in how to plan for the night time economy in a way that protects the rights of residents to a good night’s sleep whilst also ensuring that London caters for the needs of visitors, businesses and workers at night.

I calls targetQuestion No: 2017/3680 Andrew Dismore I understand that the Met.’s target for I calls attendance time has been adjusted from the original 12 minutes to a longer 15 minutes: whose decision was this, why, and were you consulted? Written response from the Mayor There has been no change to the response target times from the time a call is received since the system was introduced.   For I calls, the target has always been set at 15 minutes. This allows up to three minutes from when the caller is connected by BT to the MPS, to the case being assessed and passed for despatching of an officer. This then allows 12 minutes for the actual deployment.

I and S callsQuestion No: 2017/3681 Andrew Dismore What is the average attendance time for I and S calls a) in inner London; and b) outer London? Written response from the Mayor Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly.

Police 101 numberQuestion No: 2017/3682 Andrew Dismore Are you satisfied with the performance of the police 101 number; and if not, what are you doing about it? Written response from the Mayor Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly.

Night time economy [1]Question No: 2017/3683 Andrew Dismore Further to Question No: 2017/3289: 50,000 people visit Camden Town each Friday and Saturday evening. This is equivalent to the crowd at a Premier League football match. Camden Town have a dedicated Police team of 6 officers on duty as well as the usual SNT team. At a “category A” football match with 50,000 fans in London there would typically be 150 police officers.  There would also be 200 stewards. Football crowds are usually easier to police.  The majority of fans are home fans who   know what the best routes are and what the police will worry about.  They follow the same routes every 2 weeks or so.  Many night time  economy customers come only once every 3-6 months and are going to different places  and  don’t have such an understanding of how to move around the area. Given this much lower policing ratio, is it any surprise that the streets of Camden Town (and other areas of London affected by night time economy crowds) see the level of incidents and anti-social behaviour that they do? Your response being: ‘Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly.’ Will you now provide a substantive reply? Written response from the Mayor Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly.

Night time economy [3]

Question No: 2017/3685

Andrew Dismore

Further to Question No: 2017/3292:

How will you make a more diverse night time offering attractive if you don’t find a way of dealing with the anti-social behaviour and crime that come from the alcohol led nature of the current night time economy post 23:00?

Your response being:

‘Officers are drafting a response which will be send shortly.’

Will you now provide a substantive reply?

Written response from the Mayor

Please see my response to MQ 2017/3292.

London’s nightlife is diverse, from theatres and pubs, to restaurants and music venues. It is second to none and forms an essential part of the city’s cultural offer. Government data shows that alcohol consumption trends are changing in the UK. A fifth of British adults under-25 are teetotal and across the wider population, alcohol consumption fell by 26% between 2002 and 2012.

My Police and Crime Plan sets out how the Metropolitan Police Service, Transport for London, British Transport Police, London Councils, London’s business community and my Night Czar, Amy Lamé, work together to address safety including anti-social behaviour and crime at night. For example, by improving consistency in licensing across London, and building partnerships between the police and businesses through business crime reduction partnerships and business improvement districts.

 

Borough merger

Question No: 2017/3686

Andrew Dismore

Further to Question No: 2017/3294:

I am getting reports from Camden residents and ward panels that the Pathfinder (Camden & Islington) Borough has resulted in a deterioration of services provided by the MPS, including in particular the poor standard of investigations into crime allegations. What is being done to correct this?

Your response being:

‘Officers are drafting a response which will be send shortly.’

Will you now provide a substantive reply?

Written response from the Mayor

Please see my response to MQ 2017/3294.

 

The Pathfinders are a genuine test of the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) plan to merge borough commands into fewer, larger ‘Basic Command Units’ (BCUs). These tests are ongoing and the MPS will continue to learn, adapt and evaluate as challenges arise.

The Pathfinders are designed to test a model of policing in which investigations are dealt with more efficiently and effectively. This involves the officer who first attends the call owning the investigation and means that the victim should experience a better service and deal with fewer different units and officers.

Work is continuing to support the development of skills and also to make sure that sufficient resources are available to manage the demands being placed on response teams. This work includes changes to the organisation and management of teams, supported by technical changes, which will take place in September 17.

The Commissioner and I will together consider the evidence from the Pathfinders and the views of stakeholders towards the end of 2017. No further roll out will be made until the challenges on the Pathfinders have been resolved.

 

Moped Crime

Question No: 2017/3687

Andrew Dismore

Further to Question No: 2017/3299:

How many a) moped enabled crimes and b) moped thefts have there been in the last 12 months; and how does that compare with the previous 3 years?

Your response being:

‘Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly.’

Will you now provide a substantive reply?

Written response from the Mayor

Please see my response to MQ 2017/3299.

 

Powered two wheeler enabled crimes

Rolling year (1 July-30 June)	Total
2013-2014	1,564
2014-2015	3,219
2015-2016	5,221
2016-2017 (01/07/2016-30/06/2017)	16,445

Powered two wheeler thefts

Rolling year (1 July-30 June)	Total
2013-2014	8,385
2014-2015	11,100
2015-2016	12,359
2016-2017 (01/07/2016-30/06/2017)	16,266

 

Art Crime Squad

Question No: 2017/3690

Andrew Dismore

Is it correct that the closure of Scotland Yard’s art squad is temporary; if so when will it be reinstated; and if not how will we be able to combat the often complex smugglers and dealers in looted and stolen artefacts, especially from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan  and other parts of the middle east?

Written response from the Mayor

Please see my response to MQ 2017/ 3572.

 

The MPS is wholly committed to the work of the Art and Antiques Unit and fully understands the challenges presented by any criminality that affects the cultural heritage of the UK.

At present the MPS is facing unprecedented demands highlighted by the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire. As such a number of officers have been moved across the MPS to manage the significant demands of this investigation and the need to support the victims and families of those who tragically lost their lives.

Three officers from the Art and Antiques Unit have temporarily been moved to support this work amongst many other detectives.  These attachments are under continual review and at a point when they can be released back to the Art and Antiques Unit, then they will. These decisions are not taken lightly. The MPS has worked hard to minimise the impact on all areas of work including the important work of the Art and Antiques Unit.

In the meantime, there remains a member of staff within the Unit who is able to maintain liaison and work with the industry. They are being supported by a Detective Sergeant.  In addition, provision has been made for any allegation of crime to be investigated which will be done in collaboration with staff from that team.  As such, the work of the unit is very much operational although it is recognised that for the interim, matters will be managed in a different way whilst the three officers are working on the fire investigation, who are still available to provide expert advice when required.

From next month, a newly appointed permanent unit head, Detective Sergeant Rob Upham, will be in post.

 

Police Now scheme

Question No: 2017/3691

Andrew Dismore

How many officers under the Police Now scheme have been allocated as dedicated ward officers after completion of their 6 weeks training?

Written response from the Mayor

Officers are drafting a response which will be sent shortly

 

War Crimes Unit

Question No: 2017/3692

Andrew Dismore

How many officers at what ranks have been redeployed from the war crimes unit; is it intended that this should be a short term closure of the unit and if so for how long; and if it is intended to be permanent how will the Met investigate alleged war criminals, especially historic cases which require specialist expertise and knowledge?

Written response from the Mayor

There is no dedicated  war crime unit. War crimes are investigated by SO15 Counter Terrorism Command. Officers that deal with such investigations also deal with mainstream terrorist investigations.

 

As a result of recent events in the UK, the live threat to the country has been escalated. As such we have made the difficult policy decision to deprioritise investigations of this kind that does not raise any immediate threat to life issues. A team of detectives from SO15 are on hand to review all information received, to identify if it meets the criteria and to the viability of instigating an immediate investigation.

 

This will remain our position until such a time as we are able to re-instigate investigations and this will of course be under regular review.