London homicide rate is highest for 10 years

Figures released by London's Metropolitan Police have revealed that the city's homicide rate for 2019 is the highest for a decade.

The stabbing of a 47-year-old man in Hornsey in North London on Monday took the figure for the year so far to 142, the highest number since 2008, when the Met, as the police service is known, investigated 154 deaths.

More than half of this year's fatalities were as a result of stabbing incidents, with 23 of the victims teenagers.

"Each one of these cases is a tragedy, not just for the victims, their families and friends, but also for our wider communities who are left reeling by these acts of senseless violence," a police spokesman told the BBC.

"Tackling violence is the number one priority for the Metropolitan Police Service. One homicide, one stabbing, one violent incident, is simply one too many."

In comparison to other cities in Europe and North America, London is not an especially dangerous city.

Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris have had higher murder rates per head of population in recent years, and New York, which has a marginally smaller population than London's total of 9 million, has seen almost 300 killings this year.

This year's figure is still some way off levels in the 1990s and around the turn of the century. Shootings in London have fallen by around one-third this year, and there has been a reduction in the number of people in their 20s who are suffering knife injuries.

"We are really determined to root out the causes this terrible phenomenon and the importance is that we are really investing in preventative measures," said Lib Peck, director of the Violence Reduction Unit at London's City Hall.

London's police headquarters at Scotland Yard is also in the process of setting up a new social media-based unit to fight violent crime, and Met Commander Jane Connors said Londoners had a duty to one another to help the police try to eradicate the problem.

"We can only tackle violence together and need the help of the public to identify those willing to carry knives or involved in these violent acts," she added.

"We are grateful for those who already have had the courage to speak to us about those they know pose a danger to others."