Wimbledon MP calls for meeting with Policing Minister to raise alarm over Metropolitan Police funding cuts and job losses
With the Met now at its smallest size per head of population on record, Paul Kohler is seeking to meet with Sarah Jones, Minister for Policing and Crime, to push for a better settlement for the Met and for London.
On Tuesday, 15 September, Paul Kohler had the opportunity to question the Home Secretary during a Home Affairs Select Committee meeting. During this, Paul raised the concerns of Deputy Commissioner Matt Jukes, who described the ‘sustained pressure’ the Met police officers and civilian staff are under after a real-terms funding cuts of a third since 2015*.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood rejected the Deputy Commissioner’s “characterisation” of the funding and defended her record on policing by emphasising the Government’s ‘£2 billion uplift’ in police funding. However, analysis by the Government shows that, even with this additional investment, there remains a real-terms reduction of a third since 2015.. Furthermore, according to research by UNISON, the Met Police is the worst-affected police force across England and Wales in terms of its financial shortfall***.
Paul also raised the underfunded National and International Capital City (NICC) grant designed to cover London’s exceptional policing costs (including protecting key national & international institutions, policing major national & international events, managing large scale protests and supporting security & resilience requirements in one of the world’s greatest and high profile capital cities). He was particularly critical of how neighbourhood policing suffers due to officers being abstracted to cover these exceptional functions and cited Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Met, and his deputy who have both acknowledged neighbourhood policing suffers as a result of the failure to properly fund the NICC. The reality is that, while the NICC rose to £248.7 million in 2025/26, the cost of policing far exceeds this additional funding, by approximately £180 million****.
Because of the increasingly precarious situation the Met finds itself in from decades of underfunding, Paul is seeking to meet with the Minister for Policing and Crime to discuss what can be done to ensure the Met is properly equipped to keep Londoners safe.
Wimbledon MP Paul Kohler said:
‘Londoners deserve safe streets. They also deserve a properly funded police force with the resources to do its job. Yet, in the words of the Deputy Commissioner, the Met is under ‘sustained pressure’ following decades of Conservative and Labour underfunding and political mismanagement.
“The situation is dire: 4,300 job losses, a real-term funding reduction of a third, and the smallest the Met has ever been per head of population. A functioning police force cannot carry on like this.
“I fought to keep Wimbledon Police Station open despite the attempt to close it by the Labour Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan - He has now closed our public front counter after promising not to do so when he was elected two years ago. I know, from personal experience, what it means for local communities to have visible and active neighbourhood policing. It is not just about stopping crime; it’s the reassurance of seeing your local policeman, having a chat, and knowing their name that gives communities confidence.
“Sadly, community policing is being undermined by inadequate funding and too many abstractions. Mark Rowley himself has stated that neighbourhood policing suffers as a result of the failure to properly fund the Capital’s police service. The Liberal Democrats have long emphasised the importance of community policing. It is key for local businesses to thrive and for local people to feel safe on our high streets.
“That’s why I’m calling for a meeting with the Minister for Policing and Crime: to push for a better deal for our Met Police. Residents in Wimbledon and across London need a properly funded police force, and I urge the Minister to listen to the Deputy Commissioner and meet with me to discuss how we can reach this goal.’
Further reading:
*https://www.london.gov.uk/media-centre/mayors-press-release/Mayor-earmarks-additional-%C2%A3151m-to-support-the-Metropolitan-Police-and-keep-Londoners-safe
**https://unison.org.uk/key-issues/police-funding-shortfalls
***https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2025-04/MOPAC%20final%20budget%20report%2025-26.pdf
