The rising levels of metal theft have seen Church roofs stolen and even instances of war memorials being vandalized so that plaques could be sold for scrap. Metal theft has also delayed local commuters, harming the ability of people to get to work and of business to operate; a huge burden in tough economic times.

Streatham MP Chuka Umunna has criticized the Government for failing to stop spiralling metal thefts and has joined with other Labour MPs to press for an immediate plan of action. The Labour plan, which has been supported by the British Transport Police, the Association of Chief Police Officers and by Neighborhood Watch is designed to stop metal theft damaging the economy, to ensure people can get to work and to better bring people to justice.

The Labour plan is to transform legislation concerning scrap metal dealers by replacing the current requirement to register with a Local Authority and replace it with a licensing system; to examine the case for banning cash transactions, especially for large scale scrap metal transactions; and to require anyone selling scrap metal to provide proof of identity, recorded at the point of sale. The Labour MPs also want tougher Police powers so that rouge traders can be closed down

Commenting, Chuka Umunna MP said:

“The actions of a few are blighting our community; making it difficult for people to get to work; difficult for people to go into their own churches to pray and, horrifically, even desecrating the memory of those we have lost in war. The Conservative-led Government talked tough on crime now I would like it to prove to a doubting public that they are capable of more than merely empty words.”

“I and other Labour MPs have given the Government a plan. It is one that is good for my constituents, good for our economy and essential to enforce the rules of a decent society. I call on the Government to start paying attention to one of the many serious pressing concerns that ordinary hard-working people have and of which this Government is proving too aloof to take notice.”

“We have given the Conservative-led Government a plan. They have no excuse not to act”

Addressing the Home Secretary directly in the House of Commons this week, Mr Umunna asked what evidence Ministers had examined on the role of gangs in last month’s unrest and how much of a new £18 million fund, announced earlier this year to help areas affected by gang violence, will benefit Lambeth

In response, the Home Secretary promised to write to Mr Umunna to provide clarification on the points he raised.

Responding to Mr Umunna, she said: “If I may, I will write to him with the specific information he has requested about Lambeth. London as a whole is one of the three areas, along with Greater Manchester and the west midlands, that are particularly benefiting from the funding that has been made available, as they are areas where the gang problem is a particular issue.

“The honourable Gentleman is right that, notwithstanding whatever role gangs played in the riots and unrest of early August, we must deal with gang culture, because, sadly, it is a problem that blights too many of our communities.”

Mr Umunna asked the question following his recent discussions with local police, and said to the Home Secretary: “I have been told by my local police that gangs were not necessarily co-ordinating all the activity in our area, although gang culture is a big ongoing issue for us.”

Commenting afterwards, Chuka Umunna MP said:

“It is crucial that we are able to gain a full understanding of the role of gangs in last month’s unrest in our area and beyond so that policies can address the situation.

“Long before last month’s unrest occurred, gang violence has been a significant issue locally. It is welcome that the government has made available additional funds to tackle gangs and address gang culture, but it is crucial that Lambeth benefits from this. That is why I asked the Home Secretary to clarify how the funds are being allocated.”

“It’s a great shame that failures at the top should tarnish the reputation of London’s Met, a police service overwhelmingly made up of hard working local officers who work tirelessly to keep Londoners safe in very difficult circumstances.

“Whilst it is important the relationship between the police and the media is reformed and addressed, I hope this saga will not distract from the Met’s core tasks, not least reducing and preventing the serious gang, gun and knife crime which continues to blight streets in my constituency and others.”

Dear all

You will now all have heard of the senseless killing of yet another young man from and in our community – my constituent Nana Darko Frempong.

When we hear of a life tragically lost in our community, our hearts sink – we can only imagine the pain that their loved ones are going through. Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to his family and friends.

We, together as a community, will do all we can to support and comfort them at this very difficult time – let there be no doubt: we are right behind them.

I will not comment on the details of this particular incident as I do not wish to prejudice the police investigation which is ongoing, save to say that it is totally unacceptable that this is happening on our streets, we will work together to tackle the root causes and, above all, we must bring the perpetrators of these acts to justice.

Clearly we have a problem given the number of incidents that have occurred of late. There are many things we need to do which I have already mentioned at CPCG before. Above all, we need much better joined up working locally and nationally to prevent these tragedies occurring. We are already working towards this as you will hear this evening from the police and the Council; I am doing all I can to address this in Parliament at a national level.

I am sorry I cannot be with you this evening – we are voting on important counter terrorism measures in the House of Commons tonight. However, you can speak to my office manager Anna Coffey who is in attendance and/or contact me directly with your thoughts on this issue.

Yours in solidarity,

Chuka

The Streatham area is currently experiencing a high level of day time burglaries. Peak time is between 2pm – 9pm. Practically all of these burglaries could be prevented if BOTH FRONT DOOR LOCKS are always used. It does not take a burglar long to get through a single lock, such as a Yale. The burglars open these single locks by “slipping them” with a piece of plastic, or by just forcing them with a shoulder barge or a kick or by unlocking them from the inside having broken a small window to gain access (access also gained through letter boxes).

The police urge all residents and businesses to be extra vigilant and to use BOTH FRONT DOOR LOCKS at all times. This includes when you are inside your property and not just when you leave! If you live in a multi-occupancy residence please speak to all flats to ensure this is done. Please report any sightings of suspicious people on 999 (we have arrested 7 burglars recently as a result of calls from the public). Please keep all valuable items hidden from easy view from front windows and doors. Please use window locks during the warm weather. A large number of bicycles left in hallways have been stolen so please remove these to where burglars cannot see them.”

Contact details for your local Safer Neighbourhood Team can be found here.

To read the debate and the Minister’s response, follow this link. Following the debate, Mr Brokenshire wrote to Chuka to provide additional information – this letter is below:

In March, Chuka again raised the issue of gun and knife crime with the government and asked the government for an update on the steps it is taking to address the issue. Mr Brokenshire wrote to Chuka again following this – his letter is below:

Over the last few months local people will have digested various reports of shootings of young people in our communities with a mixture of shock, disbelief and, at times, weary resignation.

99% of London’s youth are not involved in serious youth violence but we have a problem in London. We have had for some years now. Our young people know this because too many of them are living with the fear that it will affect them, nevermind the other innocent bystanders who unwittingly find themselves caught in the middle of conflict.

The numbers of fatalities are not what they were in the watershed year of 2007 but one life lost to violence on our streets is one too many – it blights our community.

The last government introduced a range of measures designed to tackle these problems by, for example, introducing Safer Neighbourhood Teams in every ward and implementing a national Youth Crime Action Plan including street based teams of youth workers and ex-gang members working with young people. And, of course, each of us works hard with our constituents to reduce this aggressive behaviour in each of our constituencies.

The causes are complex and varied and the violence will not be solved over night: gangs becoming surrogate families for too many young people, family breakdown, adults working so many hours but deprived of time to spend with their children, the need for more youth provision and the easy circulation of firearms in the community are all contributing factors.

But let there be no doubt – people in Lambeth & Southwark are saying with one voice that this violence is unacceptable, we will not stand by and let it happen. The solutions for the future will be found in the partnership between the communities of Lambeth and Southwark, the Police and elected representatives. We pledge to work to that end.

Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP (Lab, Camberwell & Peckham)
Kate Hoey MP (Lab, Vauxhall)
Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP (Lab, Dulwich & West Norwood)
Chuka Umunna MP (Lab, Streatham)

Speaking in a debate in the House of Commons this week, Mr Umunna said: “In my local area, the police tell me that their back office is already cut to the bone. We now have the ridiculous situation of front-line police officers taking time to do things such as empty the bins in a police station in my constituency.

“That was done by the back office, but it is no longer a back-office function as the back office is not there. The police are spending time emptying bins rather than being on the street fighting crime. How on earth is that justifiable?

Mr Umunna’s intervention was greeted with heckling and laughter from the Liberal Democrat and Conservative benches in the House of Commons Chamber.

Project Hannah, an innovative pilot programme, is currently being put in place by Lambeth Police. The project does not involve a reduction in officers, but is a reorganization to maximize resources and create additional coverage on beat patrols. There are fears that reducing resources while the programme is being implemented could put these improvements in jeapoardy.

The government is cutting the police budget by 20 per cent over the spending review period. In real terms, this means a cut of 7.5 per cent in 2011/12 and 8.7 per cent in 2012/13. Around 80 per cent of police forces’ budgets is spent on personnel.

Commenting, Mr Umunna said: “Ministers talk of police forces making efficiency savings, but back office functions and operations have already been cut back to the bone.

“Community safety in our area is no laughing matter and it is an affront to local people who will find it deeply disrespectful that MPs on the government benches think it is. This shows how deeply out of touch the Liberal Democrat-Conservative government is becoming from the lives of my constituents”.

The figure for funding between financial year 2010-11 and 2012-13 comes from House of Commons Library analysis of the government’s recent announcements on police funding. While the statistics published by the government are in cash terms, this new figure shows the true impact of the cut after inflation is taken into account.

In 2012/12, Metropolitan Police funding will be cut by 7.5 per cent or £159.2m in real terms and 8.7 per cent (£172.2m) in 2012-13. Over the full four years of the spending review, police forces will see their funding cut by up to 20 per cent in real terms.

Streatham MP Chuka Umunna has recently met with local police chiefs to discuss how the funding cuts will affect the local area.

Commenting, Mr Umunna said: “The police have been making huge efficiency savings in recent years and my local officers are clear that any further cuts to police funding will directly affect frontline services.

“By imposing cuts of this speed and scale, the government has put Metropolitan Police in an impossible position. The Home Secretary has ignored warnings that this could mean thousands fewer police officers across the country.

“I am very concerned about what these cuts will mean for policing in our area and that they could undermine the fantastic progress the police have made in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour.”

In an adjournment debate held in Parliament last month and initiated by Chuka Umunna, MP for Streatham, the important role which youth offending teams play in preventing re-offending among young people was highlighted.

The teams, which work in the community and are assigned to each local authority area, have been funded by the Youth Justice Board. They work across different agencies, providing help and expertise with rehabilitation and supervision.

Home Office Minister James Brokenshire, who wrote to Mr Umunna following the debate, said in his letter: “The YJB has the important aim of preventing youth offending…the Government intends to do everything possible to ensure the best outcomes for young people, their families and communities.”

So far this year, over 1,200 teenagers in London have been victims of knife crime , 145 have been victims of gun crime, and 15 teenagers have been murdered in London.

In July, Zac Olumegbon, a constituent of Mr Umunna, was stabbed and killed outside Park Campus in West Norwood. Mr Umunna raised this with the Prime Minister on 7 July.

Commenting, Mr Umunna said: “The abolition of the Youth Justice Board is deeply concerning given the problems we have had with youth gun and knife crime this year.
“Youth Offending Teams play a hugely important role, working in the community to prevent young people offending and re-offending. For me, this decision reflects a failure to grasp the urgency of this issue on the part of the government.”