Mr Livingstone also announced his ‘999 pledge’ which would see some Safer Neighbourhood Teams increased from 6 officers to 9 who would provide “a presence on the streets from 9am to 9pm where people need them most.”
The former Mayor, who is hoping to return to City Hall at this May’s elections, has also promised to create a ‘repeat offenders unit’ within the Met to tackle reoffending.
Labour say this could save the police £500 million per year.
Publishing his manifesto, Mr Livingstone said: “Along with cutting the fares and making Londoners better off, driving down crime and making London’s streets safer is my top priority. Under a Conservative Mayor, robbery, burglary and knife crime are rising, but we have seen a cut in police numbers from 1,700 officers since 2010.
“I will reverse the Tory Mayor’s cuts to police numbers and my 999 pledge will beef up more of London’s safer neighbourhood teams with more officers and longer hours on the streets”
Mr Johnson has repeatedly refuted claims that he has cut officer numbers and says there will be 1,000 more warranted officers this year than he inherited in 2008.
Yesterday Mr Livingstone announced measures to tackle London’s gang problem including implementing an ‘early intervention’ plan to ensure youngsters find alternatives to gang culture.
Other plans include “mediation projects to de-escalate conflicts within and between neighbourhoods.”
Mr Livingstone said: “Gang crime has scarred communities across the capital, snatched potential away from young people, and put simply, ruined lives.”
“I believe young Londoners deserve better. Through developing partnerships between London government, the police, local communities and young people, and by learning from what is proven to work, such as Pastor Mimi Asher’s work, we can begin to win the fight against gang culture.”
Candidates for Mayor include Jenny Jones (Green party), Ken Livingstone (Labour), Lawrence Webb (UKIP) and Boris Johnson (Conservative) and Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrat). A full list of candidates can be found here.
Candidates standing as London Assembly constituency members can be found here. Candidates for the 11 Assembly London-wide seats can be found here.
