Evening Standard Comment: Teenage homicides, Covid and TfL – London’s priorities for 2022

Christian Adams
WEST END FINAL

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As millions of Londoners return to work and school, the first day back is an opportunity to look ahead for the year, and at the urgent priorities facing the capital.

We must, sadly, begin with knife crime. It was a grim and bloody end to the year. Two boys — aged 15 and 16 — were stabbed to death an hour apart in separate incidents last week. To compound these tragedies and the indiscriminate loss of life, the killings took teenage homicides in the capital to 30 for the year, surpassing the previous peak of 29 in 2008.

To break this unwanted record heaps further scrutiny on three key players: the Met Commissioner, Mayor and Home Secretary.

Dame Cressida Dick, already facing numerous pressures following a year of scandals, must demonstrate she has a plan to stem the tide of bloodshed. The Met can point to some successes.

Detectives say that since 2019, homicides have decreased by seven per cent, and knife crime 32 per cent. Yet keeping teenagers — including children as young as 14 — safe from a violent death must represent a base level of success, and on this alone, it was a dreadful year. With her recent contract extension, Dame Cressida must get a grip of this ongoing epidemic.

Sadiq Khan, for his part, is not only Mayor but also effectively the city’s police and crime commissioner, with a direct mandate for policing. Newly re-elected, Khan must demonstrate how he will use his powers to stop the violence and engage with young people most at risk.

And finally, there is Priti Patel, who did not meet the Met Commissioner’s request for an additional 6,000 officers. Having given Dame Cressida a two-year extension, the Home Secretary too must be held accountable for her actions.

Of course, Covid-19 and in particular the Omicron variant remain at the front of our minds as we begin 2022. There are some early positive signs that the wave in the capital may have peaked. If further data backs this up, it will serve to highlight the power of Londoners coming forward to get vaccinated and boosted, which all the evidence suggests makes an enormous difference when it comes to reducing the chance of hospitalisation.

As a city, we must hold our nerve and remain cautious but so long as the data supports it, we should re-open as soon as possible. If we keep on doing the basics — vaccinating, testing, mask-wearing and rolling out better ventilation across schools and offices — we can realistically hope to make 2022 the year where invasive restrictions are no longer necessary.

The third key priority for the year is fixing the capital’s transport woes. There can be no London-wide bounce-back without maintaining our world-class public transport network. A new year must deliver a fresh approach in negotiations between the Government and City Hall, too often marked by naked politicking rather than the needs of Londoners and the wider UK recovery. Transport for London needs a long-term financial resolution, not more hand-to-mouth mini deals.

London, like any global city, faces numerous and urgent challenges. On a quiet and rainy Tuesday, things may not at first glance appear much different to last year. Yet thanks to vaccines and the willingness of Londoners to come forward, alongside our remarkable NHS staff, there is every chance that 2022 will be better than the last.

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