London police hail their expanded e-bike fleet as ‘game changer’ against phone theft

The Met is deploying 20 new e-bikes, which are capable of speeds of up to 50 miles per hour (80 kph) and able to follow suspects off roads and even up stairs, aiming to tackle so-called snatch offences.

During a patrol on Wednesday, one Met officer hailed the impact of the new e-bikes and the force's use of drones, though he said their "regular customers" had already learned to adapt to the police's shift patterns.

The Met says the bikes have particularly helped them tackle mobile phone thefts, with statistics showing offences in the 12 months to May down from about 68,000 to 54,000.

But the number of "positive outcomes", which the Met describes as offences resulting in a caution, charge or other criminal disposal, remains below 1%.

Kaya Comer-Schwartz, London's deputy mayor for policing and crime, told Reuters that tackling offences like phone thefts needed to come alongside "improving the wider criminal justice system and supporting victims".

LONDON CRIME IN FOCUS

Right-wing politicians and public figures, including U.S. President Donald Trump and X owner Elon Musk, have frequently commented on crime in Britain and London in particular, with Trump claiming there were "no-go" areas for police in London.

While crime had been on a general upward trend as policing funding declined, the latest figures show neighbourhood crimes such as thefts, robberies and burglaries in London decreased in the year to June. Last month, London Mayor Sadiq Khan criticised people online and abroad who "have been trying to talk London down".

Louise Puddefoot, the Met's deputy assistant commissioner for frontline policing, said discussion of crime in the capital was not something the force focused on.

She told Reuters: "I think my job is to show people that we're tackling criminality, provide the data and the figures so they appreciate that we're not the most dangerous capital city around and provide that reassurance.

"It's probably not my job to kind of get into the political motivations for that commentary, but I think all we can do is show that we're tackling criminality and reassuring communities."