Why London's lowest murder rate in more than a decade is drawing attention

"The number of murders in London in 2025 is drawing attention for being the lowest in more than a decade. Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan police commissioner, and Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, say figures show their policies and plans are working, which are best summed up as tough on crime, tough on the complex causes of crime. Has the Met turned a corner and can Khan shake off claims he presides over a city where crime is out of control?"

"Accurate homicide data held by the Met goes back to 1997, and the total number of murders in London last year was 97, the second lowest on record. The lowest was in 2014, when 95 homicides were recorded, but claims that last year's total amounts to a record comes from the fact that the city's population is estimated to half a million bigger, at 9.09 million people. That gives a homicide rate of 1.07 per 100,000 people in 2025 versus 1.11 in 2014."

London recorded 97 murders in 2025, the second-lowest total since 1997 and a lower per-capita homicide rate than in 2014 due to population growth. Murders of people aged 25 or under fell markedly, with teenage killings dropping to eight. NHS data show a 29% fall in hospital admissions after stabbings over five years, from 1,350 to 955. The Metropolitan Police and the mayor attribute reductions to tougher policies, better-focused intelligence, seizure of guns and knives and improved exploitation of mobile-phone data to identify violent networks. Officials warn crime figures can fluctuate and causes often remain unclear.

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