Closing almost half of London’s police station front counters – including the one at Plumstead – is a “pragmatic” decision that will improve safety for Londoners, Sir Sadiq Khan has said.
The London mayor claimed that the Metropolitan Police’s proposal to cut the number of front counters from 37 to 19 would see more funding go into visible neighbourhood policing.
The plans will save the force £7million as the Met attempts to make up a £260million budget shortfall, but they have angered London Assembly members and MPs across the capital.
The Mayor was not present for an extraordinary meeting after the news broke last Month, instead sending his deputy, meaning Thursday’s Mayor’s Question Time session at City Hall was the first time he has been scrutinised over the decision.
After the counter at Plumstead closes, residents in Greenwich borough will need to go to Lewisham, Bexleyheath or Bromley if they want to report a crime in person. Greenwich will be the only one of the five southeast London boroughs without a front counter.
Khan argued that “very few people” still used front counters to report crime and that the money saved from closing them could be better used elsewhere.
“It was made clear that what matters most to Londoners is visible policing in their communities,” he told assembly members. “In the face of devastating cuts to policing by the previous government, the Met faces a stark financial situation.
“This has led to them needing to make a number of tough choices. Any changes to the number of police station front counters is an operational decision for the Met to take.”
The Met first began closing its front counters in 2013, when London had nearly 140 of them.
Boris Johnson closed 65 counters when he was mayor, and Khan shut 38 in 2017.
In his election manifesto last year, Khan promised to maintain a 24-hour police front counter in every London borough. But he told assembly members that “when the facts change, I change my mind”.
He added: “95 per cent of crime is now reported online, by phone or directly to officers in their community. There are more people reporting crimes over the phone or online – if we improved their services, the quality received by Londoners is enhanced.
“Very few people use front counters – it’s just a fact. Some counters were used just three times a day to report crimes. We have to recognise the effects of austerity and what the police can afford to do.
“I could insist with the commissioner that certain things happen but when he explains the operational consequences – for example, the £7 million saved from closing front counters equates to more police officers.
“I would be a fool to be dogmatic and not follow the evidence presented. I made a pragmatic decision to listen to the advice of the police and pivot that funding to an improved command and control centre.
“It’s money we could spend on having more police officers instead of front counters we don’t use.
“Rather than spending money on bricks and mortar, we should spend limited resources on neighbourhood policing and resources that Londoners do use. A building doesn’t make people feel safe, police being visible does make people feel safe.”
A Met Police spokesperson previously said that five per cent of crimes were reported at front counters last year – equating to just under 50,000.
But assembly members noted that individuals visit counters for other reasons, such as reporting missing people, seeking guidance or using them as a place of safety.
Kumail Jaffer is the Local Democracy Reporter covering London’s mayor and assembly, based at MyLondon. The Local Democracy Reporting Service is a BBC-funded initiative to improve the coverage of councils in the local media.
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