Theresa May finally responds to UK's knife crisis after Met Police chief dismisses her claim that rising violent crime and officer cuts are not linked and admits she could call in Army to help

  • Theresa May claimed there was no link between fewer police and more knifings
  • Britain's top police chief says there is 'obviously' a link and could resort to Army
  • Prime Minister calls number of meetings on issue and says there's 'more to do'
  • Comes after Jodie Chesney and Yousef Makki, both 17, killed in separate attacks 
  • Their deaths at the weekend mark 27 under-19s killed in the UK in 12 months
  • Theresa May has been jolted into action on Britain's knife crime epidemic after the country's top police chief said she could call in the army.
    The Prime Minister provoked fury yesterday when she claimed there 'was no direct correlation between certain crimes and police numbers'. 
    Today, Metropolitan Police chief Cressida Dick said there was 'obviously' a link between dwindling numbers of officers and the plague of teenage knife deaths. She wouldn't rule out falling back on the Army if needs be.
    On the day of Ms Dick's radio appearance, Theresa May ordered an urgent set of ministerial meetings to address the issue.
    Theresa May was jolted into action on knife crime today after she was mocked for saying Britain's knife crime epidemic was not linked to dwindling police numbers
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    She changed course after Britain's top police officer, Cressida Dick, said there was 'obviously' a link
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    Theresa May was jolted into action on knife crime today after she was mocked for saying Britain's knife crime epidemic was not linked to dwindling police numbers. She changed course after Britain's top police officer, Cressida Dick, said there was 'obviously' a link 
    Speaking on LBC radio this morning, Cressida Dick said: 'I think that what we all agree on is that, in the last few years, police officer numbers have gone down a lot, there's been a lot of other cuts in public services, there has been more demand for policing and therefore there must be something, and I have consistently said that.
    'I agree that there is some link between violent crime on the streets obviously and police numbers, of course there is and everybody would see that.'
    The Met is trying to recruit 3,000 officers, 1,500 of which are new posts, but this will still leave the force below the numbers it had in 2013/14.
    Ms Dick's comments came after Mrs May was mocked for claiming there 'was no direct correlation between certain crimes and police numbers'.
    John Apter, chairman of the Police Federation, said the Prime Minister was 'delusional', while former Met Commissioner Lord Hogan-Howe called for 20,000 officers to be recruited and demanded that ministers 'get a grip on the crisis'.
    Chuka Umunna, of The Independent Group, also hit back, saying on Twitter: 'It is absurd for the Prime Minister to suggest that having more police will not help reduce the violence on the streets. She insults people's intelligence with this nonsense.'
    At a Cabinet meeting on the issue of knife crime on Tuesday, Mrs May said that the killings of Jodie Chesney and Yousef Makki last week were 'absolutely appalling' and told ministers her thoughts and sympathies were with the teenagers' families.
    Jodie Chesney, 17
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    Yousef Makki, 17
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    Jodie Chesney, 17, and Yousef Makki, 17, became the latest victim of knife attacks this weekend
    Nick Ferrari (left) today asked Cressida Dick about the link between recreational drug use and crime and she agreed middle-class users of Class A substances have 'blood on their hands'
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    Nick Ferrari (left) today asked Cressida Dick about the link between recreational drug use and crime and she agreed middle-class users of Class A substances have 'blood on their hands' 
    Mrs May's official spokesman said that the PM told Cabinet that while the Government was already taking action, their deaths were 'a stark reminder that there is more to do to tackle violence on our streets'.
    She tasked the Home Office with co-ordinating an urgent series of Cabinet-level ministerial meetings and engagements to accelerate the work Government is doing in support of local councils and police.
    Mrs May said the problem would require 'a whole-of-Government effort, in conjunction with the police, the wider public sector and local communities'. 
    The issue was brought into focus after teenage girl scout Jodie Chesney, 17, was stabbed on Friday in Romford and Yousef Makki, 17, was also killed the following evening.
    LBC presenter Nick Ferrari asked Cressida Dick this morning if 'middle-class dinner parties' who 'order in' cocaine but do not have to deal with the threat of knife crime have 'blood on their hands'.
    Ms Dick said: 'I think anybody who is not seriously mentally ill, seriously addicted, who is seeking 'recreational' drugs, particularly class A drugs, yes, I think that is a good way to put it, I do.'
    Prime Minister Theresa May today told Cabinet the murders of Jodie and Yousef were 'absolutely appalling crimes', adding that her 'thoughts and sympathies' were with the teenagers' families and friends. She ordered the Home Office to urgently to coordinate a series of ministerial meetings and engagements on knife crime.
    Over the past 12 months, 27 under-19s have been stabbed to death. There were 285 knife killings in all – the highest toll since the Second World War. 
    And in the year to September, the UK suffered 110 knife crimes a day – including attacks with serrated blades. 
    In the capital alone there have been 20 fatal stabbings since the start of 2019, with the map pictured below showing the location and names of the victims.  
    Mr Ferrari also asked the commissioner whether she would consider bringing the Army in to assist in the fight against knife crime, given their apparent availability to assist in searches and other operations. 
    Ms Dick said that she does not rule out the possibility but that she would find it hard to see how she could 'usefully call on' the military to help on London's streets. 
    The police chief said a message needs to be sent to people of 'all backgrounds' as imports of the Class A drug have increased and more are using it. 
    Following the commissioner's remarks this morning, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan blamed soaring knife crime cuts to police, youth and mental health services and schools.
    He told Sky News: 'We need much more resources from the Government to invest in preventative services and policing.'
    He added: 'We have fewer police in London now in 2019 than at any time since 2003 - our population has grown by a million and a half since 2003.
    'Also when it comes to youth services, over the last eight years dozens and dozens of youth centres have closed down, hundreds of youth workers have lost their jobs, thousands of young people who used to have youth centres to go to [now] haven't.' 
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    Reacting to Cressida Dick's comments on LBC stating there is a link between decreased police numbers and rising violent crime, Chuka Umunna of The Independent Group tweeted: 'It is absurd for the Prime Minister to suggest that having more police will not help reduce the violence on the streets. 
    'She insults people's intelligence with this nonsense.'
    Former Conservative MP Anna Soubry, now with The Independent Group, said 'of course there's a link' between policing numbers and crime. 
    She tweeted: 'We need quality cops to prevent & investigate crime. 
    'As a former criminal barrister gang/serious violence/knife crime is complicated & won't be solved simply by recruiting more police but it's part of the solution.' 
    This morning's interview sparked anger online, with some Twitter users blaming police cuts for surging knife crime and others blaming societal ills. 
    John Apter, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, criticised proposals to reduce the number of people going to prison for short sentences.
    'Despite the rhetoric you hear from politicians about being tough on those who carry knives, two thirds of those who are convicted don't face prison,' he told ITV's Good Morning Britain.
    'We have a justice secretary who is saying we need to scrap shorter sentences because the prisons are full. 
    'My argument is build more prisons. We need to have a consequence.
    'We need better engagement with young people in this country. That's at the youth groups, the education system, the social services and so on. 
    'It's a multi-functional approach that we need. It's not just the police. But some people will need punishment.' 
     

    How many more? The 27 teenagers who were ALL stabbed to death in the past year as MPs and police row over how to halt bloodbath on Britain's streets 

    By Ian Drury and Rebecca Camber for the Daily Mail
    Ministers and police chiefs clashed last night over whether a surge in knife deaths is linked to tumbling officer numbers.
    The families of the latest teenage stab victims – girl scout Jodie Chesney and private school pupil Yousef Makki, both 17 – yesterday told of their horror and devastation.
    In an impassioned Commons statement, Jodie's constituency MP Julia Lopez, a Tory backbencher, warned that the public was losing faith in the Government's ability to keep the streets safe.
    Lyndon Davis, 18
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    Keelan Wilson, 15
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    Lyndon Davis, 18, and Keelan Wilson, 15, are among Britain's teenage knife victims
    Sami Sidhom, 18
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    Abdi Ali, 17
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    Sami Sidhom, 18, and Abdi Ali, 17, were also killed in stabbings
    Her Labour colleague Stella Creasy, whose east London seat has been blighted by knife killings, joined her call for urgent action. 
    She told Home Secretary Sajid Javid: 'The taskforces, the consultations, the more reports, it isn't working. This is an emergency that requires an emergency response.'
    Over the past 12 months, 27 under-19s have been stabbed to death. There were 285 knife killings in all – the highest toll since the Second World War.