London politics
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18 hours agoThe London Buzz - 16th September 2025
Local fundraising, unequal access to weight-loss drugs, halted developments after objections, a mayoral pay rise, transport updates, and cultural events across London.
Violent crime in London has dropped by 13%a fall of nearly 10,000 attacks a yearas the capital records its lowest homicide rate in five years. New figures from the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) have revealed sharp drops across serious offences, including 9,774 fewer violence with injury offences, 30 fewer homicides, 115 fewer gun crime incidents, and notable drops in both residential and business burglaries.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) said 15 fire engines were in attendance at the building on Wood Lane. The fire is affecting floors towards the top of the building, which include a restaurant and an area of external decking and ducting, while an unknown number of flats have also potentially been affected. LFB and the Metropolitan Police are working to evacuate nearby buildings as a precaution with a rest centre being set up for those who had to leave their homes.
According to a study put together by Locals Insider, the capital city was ranked the best UK destination to let your hair down one last time before officially tying the knot. In a survey of more than 2,000 people, London came out on top with more than a quarter of respondents naming it the best spot to celebrate a stag do. A further 20.7% of voters agreed that London was also the place to be for hen dos as well.
In the 1970s and 80s, when it was possible to envisage curbing car use in favour of integrated public transport in Britain's towns and cities, my father, Rob Lane, who has died aged 84, was a leading exponent of prioritising public services and pedestrian safety over the car. As a lecturer in transportation studies at the Polytechnic of Central London in the 1960s he wrote
2. The British Museum Home to a vast collection of art and antiquities from around the world, the British Museum is a treasure trove of human history. Highlights include the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles, and the Egyptian mummies. 3. The Tower of London Step back in time at the Tower of London, a historic castle that has served as a royal palace, prison, and treasury. Marvel at the Crown Jewels and take a guided tour with one of the Yeoman Warders.
PA Media A bus driver has been taken to hospital after a collision in central London in which several passengers and pedestrians are understood to have been injured. The Met Police, the London Ambulance Service (LAS) and London's Air Ambulance were called to Victoria Street in Westminster at about 08:20 BST, the force said. There are no reported fatalities, the Met added.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today reiterated that one death is one too many and committed to continuing to tackle violence and its complex causes, as early figures show that London recorded the fewest number of homicides across June, July and August since 2018. The Mayor has vowed to continue building on the hard work to tackle violence across the capital and hailed the impact of his London Violence Reduction Unit and the hard work of the Met Police,
Over the years, Bemi Orojuogun, known to her nearly 300,000 followers as "Bus Aunty", has loved exploring London and filming selfie videos in front of the city's landmarks, especially its red buses. At first, her videos were simple clips of her smiling in different parts of London. But one day, everything changed. "It was just a normal day," she says.
Out of the planet's 10 most gorgeous bookshops, the two London entries came in fifth and eighth place. Taking the crown for London was Word on the Water in fifth place overall. This famous bookbarge can be found on a 1920s Dutch barge floating on Regent's Canal near King's Cross. As well as selling keenly prices editions in all sorts of genres, this retailer also puts on live music events every now and again, with jazz musicians playing atop the barge.
The impact of this behaviour is a growing concern for the public, local businesses, and the council. Tyre burnouts leave lasting skid marks on road surfaces, contributing to the visual deterioration of a high-profile retail area and necessitating more frequent resurfacing at a cost to the council and its partners.
"There was a chemical leak in the basement of Guy's hospital. It's just reopened now. One of the engineers accidentally mixed chlorine with sulphuric acid, and it totally exploded."
Each year, the new Lord Mayor of London is sworn into office in a ceremony as rich in pomp as it is ancient in history, and in total silence. For over 800 years, on Michaelmas Day, the City of London's liverymen elect a new Lord Mayor for the year ahead, culminating in the Silent Ceremony weeks later.
Londoners are currently dealing with significant travel disruption during lunchtime due to a points failure affecting four Underground lines. The Circle and Hammersmith & City lines have been completely suspended because of this issue at Edgware Road station. Additionally, the Metropolitan line is facing severe delays, and the District line is partially suspended. Transport for London, TfL, has announced that tickets are being accepted on local buses to mitigate this disruption.
Mid-market private equity investment in London fell in the first half of the year, declining by 14% compared to H1 2024, resulting in 168 deals.