Street crime slashed by 31 per cent

Scotland Yard has cut street robbery by 31 per cent since Home Secretary David Blunkett gave the force six months to improve or face takeover, the Evening Standard can reveal.

Street robbery in London has fallen to its lowest level since January 2001, with offences now down to 154 per day from 224 when Mr Blunkett delivered his ultimatum.

The figures for July are a success for Met Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens as they provide evidence of a sustained fall in street crime since he started the Operation Safer Streets blitz against muggers. It saw 250 officers diverted from traffic duties to anti-robbery squads.

Sir John said today: "We are delighted. In December, we identified that the figures were beginning to go through the roof and decided there was a challenge we had to address.

"The key was diverting traffic officers experienced at high-speed driving into street crime to improve the way we responded immediately after a robbery. We also now get crime figures every week so we can see where the hotspots are and tackle them."

Sir John paid tribute to the way the Evening Standard's Fight Street Crime campaign had put police and politicians under pressure to reverse the alarming trend which saw street robberies hit an all-time peak of 232 offences per day at the end of last year.

"Evening Standard drew attention to our problems and public concerns. At the same time, it allowed us to put at the forefront the fact that we needed more resources. The politicians have taken that up, and I am certain they would not have done it without the pressure the Standard put on."

Street robbery became one of the most politically charged issues of the year. After 11 September, there was a surge in offending as police resources were diverted to counter-terrorism. Pressure also grew in January, after a teenage girl was shot in the head by a robber who stole her mobile phone.

Mr Blunkett shocked police chiefs when he used an interview with the Standard to give the Commissioner six months to clamp down on violence and street robbery and to warn he would intervene in failing boroughs if the Met did not make progress.

Senior figures at Scotland Yard were outraged by the unprecedented ultimatum, insisting Mr Blunkett did not have the power to step in. The remarks sparked a Parliamentary backlash against plans in the Police Reform Bill to give the Government power to take over failing police divisions.

The Bill only made it through Parliament in a watered-down form, which means the Home Secretary can only make recommendations for change.

However, Mr Blunkett can feel pleased about the impact his warning had on police performance and in moving street crime up Tony Blair's agenda. He won an extra £13million a year for the Met to fund the anti-robbery drive, and since the Prime Minister took charge of a new street crime action group, courts and schools are being more pro-active in speeding up cases, bolstering the quality of evidence and curbing truants who are responsible for so many mobile phone thefts.

Sir John has also praised the efforts of the Government to persuade mobile phone firms to make handsets less desirable targets. From last month, the big service providers began to bar stolen ones from being reactivated on other networks.

Opportunist young offenders who are responsible for most street crimes are now being deterred by tougher jail terms, a clampdown on bail conditions, and fewer chances to commit crime because of tactical policing.