Officer stabbed and murdered during a terrorist attack on parliament in March 2017
The Metropolitan police are facing legal action over the death of PC Keith Palmer, murdered during a terrorist attack on parliament.
An inquest in October 2018 concluded with the coroner, Mark Lucraft QC, ruling that the officer’s death may have been prevented had armed officers been closer.
Continue reading...Challenging herself to see her immediate environment in a new way, photographer Sarah Lee, who has been on complete lockdown for over four weeks, shot these images on an iPhone within a one-mile radius of her home in Camden Town, north London
Steve Rotheram says covering face would make people more aware of coronavirus situation
Steve Rotheram is the latest mayor to urge people to wear masks in public after Sadiq Khan called on the government to make them compulsory on transport in London during the coronavirus outbreak.
The metro mayor of Liverpool city region said wearing any type of face covering meant Britons were likely to “go further in protecting [themselves] and other people”.
Continue reading...Sunny and modest, detective Leonard ‘Nipper’ Read was admired by criminals and colleagues alike
Most people would be hard pressed today to name a single Scotland Yard detective, yet many would nod knowingly at the name of Leonard “Nipper” Read. While he will forever be remembered as the man who finally nailed the Kray twins, a major factor in his enduring reputation was that he was regarded with great affection, not only by his colleagues but by many in the criminal fraternity, who regarded him as a straight arrow in an era when some of his fellow detectives were far from that ideal.
Long after his retirement, Read was happy to reminisce about his work, and did not seem to mind being asked the same endless questions about the Krays.
Continue reading...Concern that centres were too far from both work or home for those working in London
NHS staff have called on Boris Johnson to ensure the new coronavirus testing centres are located conveniently for health workers and not in out of town sites such as Ikea car parks.
Drive-in test centres for nurses and doctors were opened this week in converted car parks at the Scandinavian superstore in Wembley in London and Chessington theme park near the M25.
Continue reading...Many left for home without even the chance to say goodbye, knowing that their big overseas experience may be lost forever
Swapping in “aubergine” for “eggplant” and “pepper” for “capsicum” – when you remember. Watching two clocks, one 13 hours fast. Smugly renouncing Boris Johnson as “not MY prime minister”.
To some extent, the experience of being a New Zealander in London has always been one of being split between two places. Now the coronavirus crisis has forced us to pick one.
Continue reading...Council workers take advantage of the empty streets to spruce up the crossing featured on the cover of the 1969 Beatles album
The iconic Abbey Road zebra crossing made famous by the 1969 Beatles album of the same name has been repainted while the streets of London are empty because of the coronavirus pandemic.
A highways maintenance crew quietly repainted the normally busy zebra crossing on 24 March, the day after the prime minister ordered Britain to go on lockdown in an attempt to stem the spread of the virus.
Continue reading...Parts of London were almost entirely deserted on the second full day of national lockdown, after Boris Johnson ordered the country to stay at home unless absolutely necessary to halt the spread of the coronavirus
The building work to turn London’s ExCel conference centre into an emergency hospital treating coronavirus patients 'within days' has begun.
As construction began on Wednesday morning, Alex Woodside, who has been working on the cabling, posted a chilling video on Facebook showing the cavernous 100,000 sq metre Docklands site, saying: 'If you are not taking this seriously, like I wasn't, I think we really need to start'
Continue reading...The Metropolitan police have released footage of officers clearing Shepherd's Bush Green, west London, of sunbathers on the first day of the UK-wide coronavirus lockdown. 'Can you all go home please,' one officer can be heard saying. 'It's not a holiday, it's a lockdown.'
Under tough new measures announced by Boris Johnson on Monday, people are allowed to leave their homes only to exercise once a day, to travel to and from 'absolutely necessary' work, and to shop for essential items.
Continue reading...Carriages and stations appeared crowded in footage shared on social media on Tuesday morning as Transport for London closed a number of stations and reduced trains despite thousands of key workers, including NHS staff, still relying on the tube to get to work.
On Monday, Boris Johnson announced that people should stay at home and only travel to and from work where 'absolutely necessary' as the UK tries to prevent the spread of coronavirus
Continue reading...Intensive care audit shows sharp rise in admissions to critical care as London hospitals struggle to cope
The numbers of coronavirus patients needing life-or-death care have been doubling every three days, a report by senior doctors has revealed. London is worst affected, but the rest of the UK will soon be hit with a similar surge, the document warns.
The audit of intensive care carried out since the epidemic began shows that patients needing the highest level of help soared from 50 on 9 March to almost 200 on 19 March – and doctors fear this spike could turn into a nationwide surge within a few weeks.
Continue reading...America seems reluctant to lead in this crisis: so Europe, and Britain, must step up
Covid-19 is the biggest health, social and economic emergency we have faced since the second world war. And while we’re only at the beginning of the process of halting its spread, we will be living with the consequences for many years to come.
Our first responsibility is to save lives. That means giving our fantastic NHS staff the time and resources they need. The biggest threat to life is if hospitals are overrun – with more patients requiring intensive care than there are beds available – as we’ve seen in Italy with devastating consequences. We’re already starting to see some London hospitals really feeling the strain.
Continue reading...Train and bus services are to be limited as travel is restricted, raising questions for both passengers and operators
More draconian restrictions may be needed in London to stop the spread of the coronavirus, with guidance to avoid non-essential travel and stay home being ignored by some, while confirmed cases of sickness escalate rapidly. The prime minister, Boris Johnson, told his Wednesday press conference that he was prepared to take “further and faster measures” to tackle the disease.
Transport for London (TfL) is now moving to cut the number of trains and buses running throughout the week, most likely to the level of weekend schedules. On Wednesday night it announced it was closing up to 40 stations with no interchange from Thursday onwards. But what are the key issues transport chiefs need to consider when limiting services?
Continue reading...Watchdog says intelligence officers destroyed documents despite being told to keep them
A secretive Scotland Yard intelligence unit shredded a large number of documents after a public inquiry was set up into the undercover infiltration of political groups, a watchdog has found.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) announced on Wednesday that it had found that documents had been destroyed despite an instruction that they had to be preserved.
Continue reading...Metropolitan police say no terror link to deadly incident where suspect was shot with Taser and firearm
A man has been shot dead by police in Westminster after an incident that was not being treated as terror-related.
Officers from the Metropolitan police remained overnight at the scene of the incident which occurred at around 11.30pm on Sunday. Road closures were put in place.
Continue reading...Jonathan Mok says he was punched and told ‘I don’t want your virus in my country’
Police are investigating an alleged race-hate attack on a Singaporean student in London by a group of people who are said to have shouted about the coronavirus before beating him up.
Officers said they were looking into reports of an attack on Oxford Street at about 9.30pm last Monday, after Jonathan Mok shared pictures of his battered face and wrote about his ordeal in a Facebook post.
Continue reading...The police regulator says it has been tracking down witnesses across the world, as it seeks to explain why it has yet to decide whether to launch an investigation into Boris Johnson and his relationship with the US businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri.
Since late September the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has been evaluating whether to investigate the prime minister for possible criminal misconduct over his friendship with Arcuri when he was mayor of London.
Continue reading...Former One Direction member reportedly handed over cash during incident in Hampstead, North London
Singer Harry Styles was reportedly mugged at knifepoint in London on Valentine’s Day.
The 26-year old former One Direction member was “threatened with a knife” on Friday near midnight, according to police, but was unharmed after handing over an unspecified amount of cash.
Continue reading...How list is compiled also to be reviewed amid claims it blights life chances and is discriminatory
Hundreds of young people have been removed from a controversial police list of alleged gang members after claims that it is discriminatory and blighted their life chances, the Guardian has learned.
The Metropolitan police’s gangs matrix, which the force says is a vital tool in tackling violence in London, has been found to be breaking data laws.
Continue reading...