Acting Commissioner’s report

Report: 5
Date: 31 March 2011
By: Acting Commissioner

Summary

This report summarises recent performance in the MPS, as well as operations and initiatives designed to tackle crime and make London safer.

It is intended to update MPA members and give a high-level, strategic view of the work of the MPS. It highlights the Commissioner’s operational priorities of improving public confidence, tackling serious violence and serious youth violence, delivering value for money policing, ensuring a safe and secure Olympics and countering terrorism.

The performance figures referred to throughout this report are those for April 2010 to January 2011, the latest available before the deadline for submitting this report.

A. Recommendations

The report be received.

B. Supporting information

1. The following paragraphs offer Members a summary of recent performance within the MPS. The performance data referred to below is for April 2010 - January 2011 compared to April 2009 - January 2010. This is the most recently available data at the time of writing. At the Full Authority meeting, the Acting Commissioner will be able to update members on performance in February 2011.

2. The report also makes reference to the financial situation facing the MPS. The Mayor’s Final draft budget was approved by the London Assembly on 23 February. The draft 2011-14 Policing London Business Plan is being considered elsewhere on this agenda.

Confidence and satisfaction
3. The MPS has been in regular discussion with the MPA about our response to the abolition of the Policing Pledge by the Home Secretary last year. A paper was presented to the Communities, Equalities and People Committee on 13 December, detailing the decision to replace the Policing Pledge with a set of public statements that set out the MPS intentions.

4. The most recent British Crime Survey results show that the percentage of people who agree that the police and local council are dealing with anti social behaviour and crime issues that matter in their area rose to 56.7% for the rolling year to September 2010, up from 56% for the rolling year to June 2010 and ahead of our year end target of 55.4%. The MPS also remains first in its Most Similar Forces comparison group.

5. The latest available User Satisfaction Survey results relate to the period April to December 2010. Overall satisfaction remains broadly stable at 78.9% compared to 79.1% for the period April to June 2010. White user satisfaction remains stable at 80.9% (compared to 81% for the period April to June 2010) and BME user satisfaction fell slightly to 73.2% (compared to 74.2% for the period April to June 2010).

6. The MPS has begun publishing certain additional financial and Human Resources information on the MPS Publication Scheme. This includes records of spending over £500 and salary details for staff earning over a defined amount. This is in line with the Government’s aim of creating greater transparency across the public sector.

Performance

Total Notifiable Offences

7. Total Notifiable Offences (TNOs) in the period from April 2010 to January 2011 were down 0.3% on the same period last year. That equates to 1,987 fewer offences, the lowest number of TNOs in April - January since 1998/99.

Serious Acquisitive Crime

8. Serious Acquisitive Crime (robbery, motor vehicle crime and residential burglary) is up 2.5% for the period from April 2010 to January 2011. This equated to 4,000 additional offences (up to 163,631 offences from 159,631 offences).

9. This has been predominantly driven by a recent rise in motor vehicle crime which is up by 3.2% or 2,577 offences compared to the same period last year. We continue to tackle this crime on a borough by borough basis targeting known hot spots.

10. Robbery also continues to present a challenge, up by 7.9% or 2,146 offences. The increase in personal robberies remains the driver behind this, up 9.3% or 2,280 offences. Within this, personal robberies where a gun was involved decreased by 24.4%. Knife enabled personal robberies have risen by 15.2%, however the main driver in this rise has been robberies where a knife was intimated. Robberies where a knife was used to injure have fallen by 1.2%.

11. In response to this rise the MPS has continued with Operation Blunt 2 and extended Operation Autumn Nights, which was originally launched to address the seasonal upsurge in robbery and violence in early November, to the end of the financial year. Whilst clearly a challenging area for the MPS it is important to bear in mind that robbery is still at its third lowest level for the last ten years.

12. Alongside increased operational activity, a targeted media campaign is ongoing urging the public to keep valuable possessions safe, particularly around transport hubs.

13. There were 723 fewer residential burglary offences over the period April 2010 to January 2011 compared to the same period last year. This represents a reduction of 1.4%.

Most Serious Violence

14. Violence with Injury (VWI includes all Most Serious Violence and Assault With Injury offences) is showing a reduction of 5.8% for the period April 2010 to January 2011 compared to the same period last year.

15. Overall gun crime has continued to fall, with 521 fewer offences (a reduction of 18.1%) as have instances where a firearm has been discharged, down by 9.8%, or 62 fewer offences.

16. The MPS is making significant strides in reducing gun crime in conjunction with broader efforts to reduce violence. Bespoke Trident plans are in place for specific Boroughs; Operation Verano is targeting extra resources based on intelligence; SCD7 is focussing on tackling the supply of firearms; and the media is being used proactively to increase public understanding, provide reassurance and encourage information.

17. Whilst this reduction is clearly pleasing, the challenge remains to maintain this over the longer term, especially crimes where guns have been discharged and homicides where a gun has been used and this rightly remains a key focus for us.

18. Knife crime remains a challenge, up by 5.6% (582 more offences) compared to the same period last year. It is encouraging that instances where a knife is used to injure continue to fall, down by 3.3%. That is 116 fewer stabbings on London’s streets, with offences reducing from 3,555 to 3,439.

19. As well as Operation Autumn Nights the MPS employs knife arches and hand held scanners at schools across the capital, weapon sweeps in parks known to be high risk areas and through an intelligence-led approach, focussing on geographic crime hotspot areas and high-risk offenders.

Homicide

20. There were 11 more homicides during April 2010 to January 2011 compared to the previous year, an increase from 100 to 111 deaths. This is the second fewest homicides for the period over the last 12 years since 1999/00.

21. Preventing homicides, especially of teenagers, is the cornerstone of the MPS’s anti-knife crime strategy which revolves around Operation Blunt 2 and we continue to focus our partnership work on the prevention of these tragedies.

Serious Youth Violence

22. In April 2010 to January 2011 there were 42 more serious youth violence offences compared with 2009/10, an increase of 0.8%.

23. To keep young people safe, we continue to maintain our tactical focus through the umbrella of Operation Verano, which includes the Blunt 2 taskforce, Safer Schools officers, Safer Transport Teams and local BOCU officers working together to ensure a safe journey for young people between home and school.

24. The key to tackling serious youth violence is prevention. The vast majority of police work will always be about suppression, so the prevention work carried out by our partners in government, local government and our communities is vital.

Domestic Violence and Hate Crime

25. The period April 2010 to January 2011 saw further reductions in the number of reported Domestic Violence and Hate Crime offences. Domestic Violence offences were down by 5.7% (2,483 fewer offences), Racist and Religious Crime offences were down by 10.9% (918 fewer offences) and Homophobic Crime offences were down by 2.8% (33 fewer offences).

26. Despite this reduction it is important to recognise that these are under-reported crimes and that the MPS takes all domestic violence and hate crime offences seriously.

27. The MPS has developed a national online hate crime reporting tool on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Hate Crime Group, to coincide with the launch of the new True Vision website (www.report-it.org.uk). By encouraging victims to report hate crime easily and in confidence, the site aims to reduce the high number of hate crimes that go unreported.

Rape

28. In April 2010 to January 2011 compared to the previous year, the number of recorded rape offences has increased by 427 offences over the same period last year (up by 18.7%). The MPS continues to proactively work with our partners to tackle rape offences.

Public Order

29. As the Acting Commissioner reported to the February Full Authority meeting, the MPS has dedicated resources to Public Order policing in response to demonstrations outside various London embassies, including those of Egypt and Libya. The sporadic ‘UK Uncut’ protests in high streets have also required police resources.

30. The MPS is working closely with the TUC to help them deliver a peaceful march on 26 March and ensure that the right environment is created for protesters of all ages to take part. The MPS respects the right to protest and has a long history of working with the TUC.

31. The MPS will provide those taking part with information about the route and what to expect on the day through a number of channels, including our website (www.met.police.uk) and our twitter account (@CO11MetPolice).

32. We will work with businesses and communities to ensure there is as little disruption as possible from the march. The MPS and the TUC hope the march will be peaceful, but our policing plan will have contingencies to deal with any disorder or criminality. Londoners expect the MPS to respond to disorder and violence and we will do so swiftly, but proportionately. Strong views can never legitimise violence.

33. The MPS continues to plan for high profile events such as the Royal Wedding on 29 April and the State Visit of the President of the United States in May. These ongoing requirements will inevitably have an impact on borough policing. We continue to strive to balance these competing demands to minimise the impact on boroughs.

Better for Less

34. The Mayor’s Final Draft Budget was approved by the London Assembly on 23 February. The document identifies that the MPA/MPS now has a balanced budget for 2011/12. Further savings of £92.9m in 2012/13 and £174.3m in 2013/14 will be required in addition to the £260.4m and £322.8m already identified to be delivered in these years respectively.

35. A great deal of excellent work has already taken place to make savings - in 2008/09 the MPS saved £72m; in 2009/10 it saved £194m. In 2010/11, the MPS is on course to save a further £315m.

36. The MPS remains committed to continuing to deliver a better policing service for less by streamlining business support and making best use of operational assets. A significant part of this includes making efficiency savings in business support services.

37. The Commissioner has made clear to all MPS staff that his focus is on protecting operational capability as far as possible. That means delivering a policing service that recognises the importance of both the visible uniformed presence on the street and the specialist policing services the MPS provide - often working largely unseen but affecting people’s lives significantly, such as tackling organised crime, firearms, drugs and child trafficking.

38. The 2011-14 Policing London Business Plan is being considered elsewhere on this agenda.

39. The additional resources for 2011/12 from the Mayor is very welcome. However, the Service still faces a very challenging financial environment including the need to deliver savings of £163m next year.

40. Work continues across the MPS to find savings in business support services. The MPS has recently agreed to award a new multi-supplier framework for digital forensic analysis to 12 suppliers. The contract value is £27m and will save the MPS £8.7m (24%) over the four years of the framework.

Olympics

43. The MPS continues to work closely with its partners to ensure that the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games pass off safely and securely. With less than 500 days to go, the plans for delivering the Games are progressing well.

44. With the close cooperation of the ODA and LOCOG, the MPS was recently able to conduct a search exercise at one of the venues at the Olympic Park. The exercise was very successful and validated the search planning assumptions. This is welcome news given that search trained officers are limited in number and there will be a large requirement for them in 2012.

45. Operation Podium, the Olympic funded serious and organised crime project, has been working closely with LOCOG over the issue of ticketing to limit the opportunities for ticket scams. A series of proactive operations were conducted against organised tickets touts just prior to the tickets going on sale, with much good publicity and these will continue in the run up to the Games. This, and the recent welcome announcement by the Home Secretary that the fine for touting Olympic tickets will rise from £5,000 to £20,000, helps to send a clear message that such criminal activity is not acceptable and those responsible will be identified and put before the courts.

46. Work continues on building the supporting infrastructure that will be required to deliver the Games. Upgrades to the Airwave system and the Command and Control facilities continue and the National Olympic Coordination Centre is now having its final ICT fit out. In addition, the MPS were recently successful in getting planning permission from Redbridge Council for the Muster Briefing and Debriefing Centre on Wanstead flats.

47. The first London 2012 International Safety and Security Conference hosted by the MPS and the Home Office took place on the 16th and 17th March 2011. Over 125 countries who are taking part in 2012 sent representatives to listen to our plans for delivering a safe and secure Games.

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equality and Diversity Impact

1.1 This report is concerned with overall MPS performance, but a number of equalities issues are highlighted, notably measures to encourage the reporting of domestic violence.

1.2 Throughout all the operational activity detailed in this report, the MPS strives to improve the quality of service provided to victims of hate crime, ensuring that a consistent and effective service is provided to London’s diverse communities; to improve performance against domestic violence, ensuring a consistent level of service across all communities and minimising disproportionality issues; to increase community trust and confidence in the police; to develop a workforce that reflects the diversity of London.

Consideration of MET Forward

2.1 This report fully reflects how the MPS is delivering the three key outcomes of Met Forward: fighting crime and reducing criminality, increasing confidence in policing, and providing better value for money.

Financial Implications

3.1 The financial challenges facing the Service are highlighted under Section B of this report.

3.2 Reports on the progress against the current business plan and budget are submitted on a regular basis to the MPA. As at Period 10 (January 2011) the revenue budget is forecast to under-spend by £3.5m (0.1% of budget). However, Management Board have agreed the need to manage down expenditure to deliver an under-spend of £11m to support the 2011-14 budget position.

3.3 The Capital Programme as at the end of Period 10 (January 2011) shows year to date total expenditure of £137.2m. This total represents 49.7% of the revised annual budget of £276.3m. The forecast for the year of £206.5m represents an under-spend of £69.8m (25.3% of the revised annual budget).

Legal Implications

4.1 As this report is a summary of operational performance data, no legal implications arise.

Environmental Implications

5.1 This report contains no direct environmental implications.

Risk Implications

6.1 The risks and opportunities are reflected in the content of this report and controls are in place where appropriate.

D. Background papers

None

E. Contact details

Report authors: Director of Business Strategy, Michael Debens, MPS

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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