London’s mayor and police chief on Thursday used a drop in recorded street crime to reassure tourists the city is safe and counter an online narrative depicting Britain’s capital as a lawless dystopia.
The city's Metropolitan Police force said “neighborhood crime,” a category that includes phone theft, pickpocketing, residential burglary and vehicle crime, fell 14% in the year to June. In Westminster borough – home to tourist magnets including Parliament, Soho and Leicester Square – those crimes fell by more than a third, and they were down by a quarter in neighboring Camden, another tourist hotspot.
