The crime severity score for London is 10% higher compared to England and Wales combined – the highest it’s been for London since 2019
Transport for London has proposed the biggest cuts to London’s bus network in decades. 100 services per hour will be slashed and approximately 78 bus routes are facing cutbacks, while 16 of the routes could be axed which includes 6 night buses.
This comes after almost a third more UK women now feel unsafe in public spaces during the daytime, according to a comparison of 2021 and 2022 ONS data*. The same data revealed that a third more men now fear walking in public areas at night.
With Autumn fast approaching, evenings are getting darker earlier. As a result, more people are left walking through public spaces in London. This is concerning following the high-profile cases of women like Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa being fatally attacked while walking alone at night in the city
With police demand stretched, the crime severity score across England and Wales rose from 13.8 to 15.9 in the last year, marking a 20-year high. The score rises to 17.4 alone for London making it 10% higher compared to England and Wales
Mugging is one of the fastest-rising crimes, rocketing 58% in the last year in London alone. Compared to 2020, there were almost four times as many London muggings in 2022, according to Met Police data tracking crimes up to June. Other crimes on the increase in the capital are violence against a person, theft and vehicle offences as offences in the last 12 months ending August 2022 rise 10%
Stephen Halloran, criminal defence solicitor and Director at Lawtons Solicitors, says:
“It’s not difficult to see why people – particularly women – are frightened to walk through parks and other public spaces. We’ve seen some terrible cases of violence against women in recent months..
“While the recent rise in crime is partly due to Covid restrictions ending, financial hardship is also to blame. It’s no coincidence that the number of muggings, for example, has shot up.
“With police resources stretched and cuts to public transport on the horizon, more people will be turning to private transport and ridesharing services in an effort to stay safer.”
Leyla Buran, Campaigns and Policy Manager from White Ribbon UK says:
“We would recommend that investment is needed to change attitudes and behaviours of people who perpetuate and contribute to an environment of fear. This can be done through investment in prevention programmes which aim to tackle attitudes before violence occurs. This way the root cause of the issue is tackled before it causes harm. This should change societal attitudes and mean people feel safer”
However, more should be done by local authorities to alert the public when patrols and measures have been increased or changed.
