Sadiq Khan has warned pro-Palestine and Just Stop Oil protests have left Scotland Yard with a funding gap of £240 million.
It comes as there is concern that frontline and neighbourhood policing in London is suffering under the constant round of public order pressures.
Now, Khan has written to Home Secretary James Cleverly, to ask for more financial support for the force.
In the letter to Cleverly, the Mayor of London said the additional costs resulted in reduced resources elsewhere, causing London’s communities to directly suffer.
WATCH NOW: Rees Mogg interviews Just Stop Oil spokesperson Cameron Ford
Khan said: “We’ve seen a third of officers abstracted from local boroughs and that’s why the Met Commissioner has calculated the shortage in monies from the Government is to the tune of £240 million.”
“That’s why I’ve written to the Home Secretary saying, as he allocates the policing formula, he needs to make sure London gets the right amount we’re due as a national and international capital city.”
It comes as the Home Secretary prepares to announce the police funding settlement, which sets out the grants each force will receive.
Khan also pointed out that since October 7, more than 28,000 officer shifts had been devoted to managing protests in London.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
The Met has had to deal with Palestine protests and Just Stop Oil marches
Getty
A Freedom of Information request found £19.9million has been spent by Scotland Yard on Just Stop Oil since 2022, with £3.5million spent since October this year.
Earlier this month, Commander Kyle Gordon, called on Just Stop Oil to engage with the force.
He said: “When it comes to Just Stop Oil, we know when they talk about slow marches it is in everything other than name an attempt to block the road and cause maximum disruption to people right across London.
“Our desire is that Just Stop Oil come forward and speak with us, so we can actually work with them. Twenty million pounds from the public purse is a lot of money. I would much, much prefer to be using that within communities.”
The force said time spent on the group roughly equated to about 300 officers per day being taken out of frontline policing across London.
It added that 10,500 officers’ shifts have been used this Autumn.
Asked if he had any concerns about what tactics the group may employ in future campaigns, Commander Gordon said: “I’m not anxious about what Just Stop Oil might do.
“What I do hope they will do is, having seen our resolve to minimise the disruption, reach out and speak to us.”
