London Labour Party

Labour’s Home Secretary Alan Johnson MP and local MP Jim Fitzpatrick met Isle of Dogs residents from Tower Hamlet’s Safer Neighbourhoods Panel, community leaders and local police officers.

Thanks to Labour’s increased funding for policing in London there is a dedicated Safer Neighbourhood Police Team serving in every ward in the capital.

In Tower Hamlets the Safer Neighbourhoods teams have launched a new operation (Fusion) to crack down on crime and anti social behaviour. During Operation Fusion 80-90 officers target a small area of Tower Hamlets tackling crime and providing greater visibility and reassurance to residents.

Local MP Jim Fitzpatrick is campaigning to protect Tower Hamlet’s 17 safer neighbourhood teams. Boris Johnson has repeatedly refused to guarantee the future of Safer Neighbourhood Teams.

Labour’s Home Secretary, Alan Johnson MP said,

‘‘Operation Fusion is tackling one of the biggest issues for Londoners, crime and anti social behaviour. I commend Tower Hamlets police and the local Safer Neighbourhood teams for taking this highly visible response to crime and disorder.

‘Thanks to increased funding Labour has increased the number of police officers in London by 6,339 since 2001. This means there is now a dedicated police team for every community in London.

‘These local policing teams are an important way of tackling the concerns of residents and providing greater policing visibility on the streets.

‘It is about time that Boris Johnson guaranteed the future of local police teams in London so they can continue to make Tower Hamlets and London safer.’’

Jim Fitzpatrick MP said,

‘’I know that residents want the police to take action wherever there is crime and anti social behaviour. It is clear that Operation Fusion is making real progress.

‘Hundreds of arrests have been made for offences from the possession of drugs to assault and the police have spoken directly to over 500 residents about their concerns.

‘These operations are only possible because of the huge increase in the number of police officers in the capital which means every community in London now has it’s own local police team.

‘It’s vital that Boris Johnson rules out cuts to local police teams so they can continue their vital work to make our streets safer.’’