Is Harlem safer than here?

The biggest of the drug dealers tucked away his joint and considered the startling news. London was now more dangerous than Harlem? "Get outta here, man.''

Not so long ago it would have been a good idea to take him at his word. White people ventured at their peril into the heart of darkness among the housing projects on East 138th Street. If they were lucky, they went home missing only their wallets.

But research by the Conservative Party claims that you are now more likely to be mugged in Lambeth than Lennox Avenue. The borough, which includes Brixton, has a street crime rate four times that of Harlem.

For the rest of the capital the chances of being mugged are 25 per cent higher than on what were once regarded as the meanest streets in New York. London had 7.4 robberies per 1,000 residents last year. In Harlem it was 5.9.

The revelation was shocking enough to briefly suspend business among the 138th Street dealers and start a vigorous debate. One man even claimed to have visited London as a choirboy: "All I remember was the food was real bad.'' But on reflection, none was completely surprised.

"Here's why," said another man, gesturing with hands heavy with gold rings. "The police round here? You should see them. They ain't never goin' to get off the black man's back. Otherwise you wouldn't be thinking of comin' around here with your little notebook and your questions''

Tough and uncompromising policing is almost certainly the main reason Harlem has shed its reputation as a ghetto ruled by violent drug gangs. Robberies have fallen by more than 65 per cent in the last nine years. Murder is down by three-quarters. The drugs are still there, but they keep a low profile.

So far this year, there have been 827 robberies on the streets north of Central Park. In 1993, there were more than 9,700.

It was under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani that Harlem lost its violent reputation. However unpopular his hard-line police tactics made him with some local politicians and activists, there is no doubt that the Giuliani era, which also saw the city's economy boom, transformed the traditional centre of black New York. The burnt-out cars and boarded-up buildings have gone along with gunshots in the night. Yuppie couples now snap up the elegant brownstone terraced houses that would fetch up to £1.5 million downtown but here are £300,000 bargains, although a burglar alarm is still a good idea.

Tourists flock north for gospel brunches or live jazz at the restored Cotton Club. Many even brave the long subway ride, an act that would once have been regarded as insane. Most extraordinary, it is even now possible to find a yellow cab on Harlem's streets.

Less than 10 years ago, Harlem did not have a single cashpoint machine. No one would be foolish enough to use one. Now it boasts a Body Shop, HMV and a Disney store. A shopping mall has been built on 125th Street, the commercial heart of Harlem, where the biggest problem is double-parking and former President Bill Clinton keeps his office.

Families with children mix with tiredlooking men in suits heading home. If it were not for the fact that almost everyone is black, it could be midtown Manhattan.

Even the toughest districts, like Spanish Harlem and the council estates around West 144th Street ruled by the Dominicans, look no worse than Islington or Shepherds Bush. And statistically they are much safer.