Female victims of crime are being let down by the Met
Caroline Pidgeon has highlighted the failure of the Mayor of London, the UK government and the Metropolitan police to properly prioritise tackling violence against women.
Policing articles
Too many hate criminals are escaping justice
Caroline Pidgeon has expressed concern that too many hate crimes are not being properly dealt with.
The number of cases of hate crime that have resulted in a criminal charge in London has dropped over the last three years, new data uncovered by the Liberal Democrats shows. Across every single individual category of hate crime – including homophobia, transphobia, racism, disability hate crime, antisemitism and islamophobia – fewer incidents result in a charge.
Worrying to see Police Community Support Officer numbers falling
Caroline Pidgeon has highlighted her concern at the ongoing shortage of Police Community Support Officers in London.
New data revealed by the Liberal Democrats has shown that London is still short of 416 PCSOs: a shortfall of 35% of the Met's target. In fact, the data shows that the Met has lost 36 officers since July.
Caroline said:
The Met needs to accelerate investigations into sexual abuse by officers
Data requested by Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon has shown that 1,409 Metropolitan police officers remain under investigation for sexual abuse as part of Operation Onyx.
Shoplifting epidemic is now out of hand
As the cost of shoplifting in London over 2023 was estimated at £110m, Caroline Pidgeon stressed the need for the Metropolitan Police to go "back to the basics" and invest in community policing.
Caroline said:
“The increase in shoplifting across London is unacceptable.
"The Met Commissioner and Sadiq Khan need to get to grips with a problem that is quickly becoming endemic. The fact that the rate of shoplifting has risen so much in London compared to the rest of the country is a real concern.
Save Wimbledon and Teddington police stations
In the wake of Sadiq Khan's intervention last year to keep Uxbridge police station ahead of the by-election there, Caroline has asked the Mayor to step in and also save Wimbledon police station from closure, as well as ensuring Teddington police station is retained for community use.
Action is needed on soaring Tube crime
On the BBC's Politics London show, Caroline Pidgeon discussed the worrying rise in crime on the Tube.
Caroline and the London Liberal Democrats are calling for:
- More visible British Transport Police
- Better and more widespread CCTV on the network
- A public awareness campaign
- High profile prosecutions for hate crimes
The Met Police must not ignore the shoplifiting epidemic
The Met attended only 38% of calls about shoplifting during the last year, according to data obtained by the Liberal Democrats.
While the data from the first few months of this year shows a slight improvement, the force is still attending to less than half of calls. The data comes on the back of numerous businesses struggling to cope with a rising tide of shoplifting across London and the whole of the UK.
Met's plan on violence against women and girls needs more work
Caroline Pidgeon has responded to the Metropolitan Police's draft action plan on Violence Against Women and Girls, arguing that it needs a stronger focus on ethnic minority women, children and online grooming.
Caroline said:
"I welcome the recommendations made in the draft Violence Against Women and Girls Action Plan from the Metropolitan Police. I particularly am pleased that it recognises that cultural change is needed within the service to protect women and girls
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The Met needs to make immediate improvements on protecting children
In a London Assembly session with the Mayor and the Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, Caroline Pidgeon criticised the Met for its ongoing failure to address concerns around child protection and safeguarding.
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