Station threat sparks quarrel
MAYOR AND EX-MAYOR AT LOGGERHEADS AFTER BORIS BLASTS PLAN TO SHUT UXBRIDGE POLICE BASE
SADIQ Khan has taken aim at his predecessor and London MP Boris Johnson, asking him to “put the safety of local people before party politics”.
The Mayor of London directed his comments at the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP, asking him to put pressure on the government to increase funding for Metropolitan Police .
According to Chief Constable Sara Thornton, chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, counter terror funding in the capital could be cut by 7% in real terms over the next three years.
Since 2010 the force has had to make savings totalling £600 million, much of which during Boris Johnson’s tenure as mayor, and with Theresa May as Home Secretary.
The government is now demanding a further £400 million to be saved by 2021, which could force police station front counters to shut across London.
Sadiq Khan is also planning to merge back-office police functions in a bid to keep police officer numbers high while cutting down on the costs of running the police’s estate.
Boris Johnson tweeted “useless Sadiq plans to close Uxbridge Police Station. Hillingdon Council says he is wrong and so do I” after a consultation was started which, if approved, would mean just one front counter remains in Hillingdon.
The Mayor hit back saying that Mr Johnson himself had closed half of London’s police frontcounters and said: “Keeping Lon- doners safe is my highest priority – but it’s getting harder every year because of these huge Tory cuts to the Met police.
“The government have forced the Met to take some really difficult decisions - but because of these cuts it’s the only way to keep police officer numbers as high as possible.
“Boris Johnson should be focusing his anger on the government he supports, rather than on the Met.
“Rather than playing party politics he should be concerned with public safety.
“He now has a real opportunity to put the safety of local people ahead of party politics by pushing his Tory government to ensure the Met receives the funding it needs at the budget on November 22.”