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Boris Johnson caught falsely boosting police numbers
Official Metropolitan police figures contradict Boris Johnson’s wild claims on police officer numbers.
New research has discovered Boris Johnson’s re-election website has falsely claimed there are 722 more police officers operating in London than the latest official figures reported by the Metropolitan Police.
The Tory mayor’s official campaign website, BackBoris2012.com is currently over-claiming the number of police now operating in 28 of the 32 London boroughs. The biggest discrepancies between Boris Johnson’s website and reality are in Westminster, Southwark and Lambeth where his website claims there are 110, 80 and 51 more police officers than there actually are.
In nine boroughs (including Brent, Camden, Croydon and Tower Hamlets) where the number of police officers has fallen between 2008 and 2011, Boris Johnson’s website is claiming police numbers have risen.
Boris Johnson has cut over 1,100 police officers from 33,460 in 2010 to just 32,320 in 2012 and has approved plans to cut 1,800 police officers by 2014. Figures published last week by the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) showed the Tory Mayor had cut the number of police in all but one London boroughs over the last year, whilst rates of violent crimes including robbery, knife crime, rape and homicide have all risen over the same period.
Ken Livingstone said: “Did Boris Johnson really think he could get away with claiming there are 700 more police officers in London than there actually are?
“On the Tory Mayor’s watch violent crimes including robbery, rape and murder have all risen in the last year, whilst youth knife crime in London is up by 30% since he took office. And according to the Metropolitan Police over 900 police officers have been cut in the last year.
“It’s time for Boris Johnson to level with Londoners and immediately correct these hugely misleading claims on his website about the number of police officers in the capital.”
| MPS data – change in borough police numbers March 2008 – October 2011 | Police Officer number claims (Back Boris website) | Difference from website claims to actual figures | |
| Barking & Dagenham | +14.4 | + 15.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 1 |
| Barnet | +17.2 | + 50.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 32.8 |
| Bexley | +27.5 | + 42.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 14.5 |
| Brent | -23.4 | No claim | NO CLAIM |
| Bromley | +1.4 | + 21.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 19.6 |
| Camden | -8.2 | + 25.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 33.2 |
| Croydon | -12.5 | + 28.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 40.5 |
| Ealing | +20.5 | + 23.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 2.5 |
| Enfield | +19.2 | + 33.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 13.8 |
| Greenwich | +5.9 | + 43.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 37.1 |
| Hackney | +0.2 | + 28.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 27.8 |
| Hammersmith & Fulham | +16.3 | + 20.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 3.7 |
| Haringey | +1.6 | + 10.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 8.4 |
| Harrow | +4.7 | + 35.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 30.3 |
| Havering | +5.4 | + 12.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 6.6 |
| Hillingdon | +3.5 | + 21.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 17.5 |
| Hounslow | -24.2 | No claim | NO CLAIM |
| Islington | +16.5 | + 50.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 33.5 |
| Kensington & Chelsea | -27.6 | No claim | NO CLAIM |
| Kingston upon Thames | +20.0 | + 36.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 16.0 |
| Lambeth | +6.5 | + 58.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 51.5 |
| Lewisham | +24.3 | + 38.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 13.7 |
| Merton | -4.1 | + 15.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 19.1 |
| Newham | +46.8 | + 70.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 23.2 |
| Redbridge | +9.5 | + 24.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 14.5 |
| Richmond upon Thames | -12.8 | No claim | NO CLAIM |
| Southwark | +15.9 | + 96.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 80.1 |
| Sutton | +20.2 | + 26.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 5.8 |
| Tower Hamlets | -2.9 | + 39.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 41.9 |
| Waltham Forest | +13.1 | + 19.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 5.9 |
| Wandsworth | +2.2 | + 20.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 17.8 |
| Westminster | -79.4 | + 31.0 | OVERCLAIMED BY 110.4 |
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