Met Police falling short of emergency call targets - as control room staff prepare to strike on NYE

The Met Police are falling short on their aim to answer 90 per cent of 999 emergency calls within 10 seconds.

Call handlers are still failing to pick up the phone within the force’s target, according to the Met’s mid-year review report. Last year the force was praised for making a “sustained and significant improvement” in answering calls quickly, according to His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

In September 2022, inspectors discovered the force answered 63.9 per cent of 999 calls within 10 seconds – but this rose to 94 per cent by February 2024.

But standards appeared to have slipped, according to a Met Police document published last week. Between April and September this year, just 77.5 per cent of calls were answered within the time period, compared to 85 per cent in the same six months in 2024.

The report suggests there is a “positive direction of travel” but it “is not sufficient to achieve the aspiration”.

Marina Ahmad AM, Labour’s spokesperson for Policing and Crime on the London Assembly, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “The Mayor’s investment in the Met’s Command and Control Centre has made a real difference, with 999 call answering rates improving dramatically from 57.3 per cent since 2022.

“However, the latest figures show performance has dipped slightly so I will be keeping a close eye on this to ensure the progress we’ve seen isn’t lost and that Londoners can rely on emergency calls being answered as quickly as possible.”

In 2023, City Hall invested £2.5million to improve the running of the Met’s Command and Control Centre (MetCC) after the Met were placed into an advanced stage of monitoring by HMICFRS,

A Met Police spokesperson told the LDRS: “Last month we answered 88 per cent of 999 calls within ten seconds. So far in December, this figure has reached 89 per cent.

“We are doing all we can to respond to all emergency calls as quickly as possible. This includes enhanced leadership and supervision of staff and changing the way we forecast demand, meaning teams are adequately resourced. We recognise there is more to do and continue to monitor any drops in performance to quickly address them.”