00:00Yes, some policing news now. London is set to be left with only two police stations operating around the clock as the Metropolitan Police prepares to shut 10 more front counters in a bid to cut costs, a move that breaks an earlier commitment made by both the force and the city's mayor.
00:25We covered this story earlier on in the year. The number of public counters where people can speak directly with officers will fall from 37 to 27, with opening hours reduced from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends.
00:44Now, only Lewisham and Charing Cross stations, the latter currently under investigation by the police watchdog, will remain open 24 hours a day.
00:56The Met said the closures would save £7 million, though staff and victim support organisations have argued that some residents might be put at greater risk.
01:08According to the Met, about 5% of all crime reports are made at front counters, around 50,000 of London's 1 million annual reports, and the changes would release about 2,900 hours of police time each month.
01:25Now, Bishopgate Police Station, run by the City of London Police, will continue to operate its front counter 24 hours a day in east, slightly central London.
01:38The Met said that originally it planned to reduce the number of counters from 37 to 19.
01:44London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan, who oversees the Mets budget and had pledged to maintain at least one 24-hour counter in each of the 32 boroughs under the Mets' control, said he had resisted the closures, except where they were deemed absolutely necessary.
02:04Back in 2013, London had nearly 140 front counters, but the then-Mayor Boris Johnson closed 65 of them, followed by another 38 closures in 2017.
02:18So what do Londoners think about police stations having fewer front counters?
02:22What I would say is it would really be evidence-based.
02:25So what's the stats? Are people going into centres? Are they going online?
02:29Do they feel safe to respond online? And what sort of responses the public are getting, basically?
02:36So it would be led by them. I think they need to have their say.
02:39Yeah, I think it's really important that people get an opportunity to talk to the police face-to-face.
02:44If they've got a problem, the police should be the focus of the community, in many ways, part of the community.
02:50And if we're closing down police stations and closing down reception areas and police stations, it just takes the police further away from the community.
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