A third person has been arrested by counter-terrorism police investigating an arson attack at a former synagogue in east London. Minor damage was caused to a set of gates and a lock at the front of the former East London Central Synagogue building in Whitechapel on 12 May. No-one was injured. The suspected arson follows a series of attacks and attempted attacks on the Jewish community in recent weeks.
We are having real success tackling the crimes that terrorise communities. But the crimes that tear at the fabric of communities, like shop theft and shop robbery, continue to rise and we must do more. That is why we are putting 13,000 more neighbourhood officers on the beat, and have invested 2 billion more in forces across the country since we took office.
London's homicide rate is lower than rates in New York, Berlin, Brussels, Milan, Toronto and Paris, five times lower than the rate in LA, and almost 12 times lower than the rate in Chicago. Last year, the capital recorded the fewest number of homicides of victims aged under 25 this century. Our homicide rate for under-25s is now three times lower than it was when I set the VRU up in 2019,
Latest figures show the number of spiking related offences recorded by the Metropolitan police increased by 23 per cent year-on-year to 2,633 in 2024/25 - almost 220 cases a month. But in only 84 cases was there a positive outcome, such as a person being charged with an offence. Offences were highest in Westminster (435) which covers the bulk of the West End - Lambeth (173) and Camden (164).
Outlining the facts of the case, prosecutor Matthew Jolliffe said the defendant entered Comptoir Cafe and Wine in Mayfair in the early hours of May 1 and made off with several bottles of wine valued at 6,000 and 200 cash from the till. On May 13, and June 8, he attended Oliveto and Olivo on Elizabeth Street in Belgravia and took multiple bottles of wine and cash.
I think he's done a terrible job, Donald Trump said during his state visit to the UK last month, in his latest broadside at London's mayor, Sadiq Khan. Crime in London is through the roof. Trump's view is increasingly accepted wisdom in rightwing circles and is gaining traction more widely. Crime is even being blamed along with rising taxes for an apparent exodus of the super-rich from the UK.
I don't make necklaces that cost $10 million. I make jewellery that people wear, literally, every day. I chose not to do that many years ago. I've not ever had someone who's come to me and said, I've been mugged for my Stephen Webster jewellery'. Never.
The National Portrait Gallery near Trafalgar Square reported 3,060 crimes in one year, including 1,200 thefts, while their spokesman pointed out only two reportable instances among 1.6 million visitors.
