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Sir Sadiq had previously said there was a strong case to keep the police front counters open
Closing almost half of the capital’s remaining police station front counters is a “pragmatic” decision that will improve safety for Londoners, Sir Sadiq Khan has said.
The Metropolitan Police plans to permanently cut the number of publicly accessible front counters from 37 to 19, as it tries to cut costs amid a £260m budget shortfall – plans that have been criticised by politicians across the capital.
The Mayor of London previously said there was a strong case to keep them open and made a manifesto pledge to retain at least one 24-hour counter in each borough.
But on Thursday, he said “very few people” used the counters and the running costs could be better spent on neighbourhood policing.
‘Devastating cuts’
“It was made clear that what matters most to Londoners is visible policing in their communities,” Sir Sadiq told London Assembly Members.
“In the face of devastating cuts to policing… the Met faces a stark financial situation.
“This has led to them needing to make a number of tough choices.”
The Met previously said the cuts were likely to take effect from the end of this year.
The announcement followed a warning from the Met’s Commissioner that the force faced a large “black hole” in its budget.
The Met first began closing its front counters in 2013, when nearly 140 front counter police stations were open to the public to report crimes and seek help.
These closures took place under the former Conservative mayor Boris Johnson and continued under the current mayor, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.
Bethnal Green is one of the front counter closures that could begin at the end of the year, the Met said
Despite these closures, Sir Sadiq made a manifesto pledge to maintain a 24-hour police front counter in every London borough.
In 2023, he intervened to keep one such service in west London open, shortly before a parliamentary by-election in the constituency.
But this week he told Assembly Members: “When the facts change, I change my mind.
“Very few people use front counters – it’s just a fact.”
Sir Sadiq – who oversees the work of the Met Police Commissioner – said he had been told the plans would save the force £7m.
“I made a pragmatic decision to listen to the advice of the police and pivot that funding to an improved Command and Control Centre.
A Met Police spokesperson said only 5% of crimes were reported using front counters last year, with only 1% of these being made during the night.
The force added that the £7m saving would allow it to “focus resources relentlessly on tackling crime and putting more officers into neighbourhoods across London”.
However, Assembly Members said people visited counters for other reasons, such as reporting missing people, seeking guidance or using them as a place of safety.
