London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Feb 21, 2026

Sir Mark Rowley: Met Police will attend all London burglary reports

Sir Mark Rowley: Met Police will attend all London burglary reports

The Metropolitan Police will "get back" to attending all reports of burglary in London, the new commissioner has said.

Sir Mark Rowley said the crime was "too serious an intrusion" not to.

Speaking to the BBC, he said it was unacceptable the proportion of reported burglaries attended by an officer from the force had fallen to 50%.

He also said he would root out "racists and misogynists" within the Met as part of plans to rebuild public trust following a series of recent scandals.

Among those, an off-duty police officer raped and murdered Sarah Everard, while two others photographed the bodies of murdered sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman.

There has also been outrage over racist, sexist and homophobic messages shared by a group of officers based at Charing Cross police station between 2016 and 2018, questions raised over the force's approach to tackling corruption and its use of stop and search, as well as ongoing investigations into deaths following police contact, including that of Chris Kaba, who was shot by an officer.

In June, the Met was placed into a form of special measures by the police watchdog over the way it carries out its basic functions, for neglecting to identify repeat victims, and its delays in answering 999 calls.

Speaking to the BBC earlier, Sir Mark said he wanted to be able to show the public that progress had been made in key areas within 100 days, and to bring the force out of a form of special measures within 12 to 18 months.

The Met faced criticism for how it policed the Sarah Everard vigil


Part of that was a focus on burglaries.

"We're going to get back to the scene of every burglary in the home," he said, adding that the force had the resources to fulfil that pledge.

"We're never going to turn up to every single crime, and the public understand that, but something as severe as burglary needs a proper policing response. It's too serious an intrusion not to have somebody turn up," he said.

"We recently got as low as 50% on that, and that's not acceptable.

"So that's a first step in terms of getting more reliable, alongside putting more officers in communities, which people will see over the next year or so."

Burglaries in London


* For the year ending March 2022, Home Office data shows the Met recorded burglaries at a rate of six per 1,000 people, the fifth highest across England and Wales. Greater Manchester had the highest rate of 8.1 per 1,000 people

* Across all of England and Wales, the rate was 4.5 per 1,000 people

* Home Office data shows of the 53,965 burglary offences recorded by the Met in those 12 months, only 4% have resulted in a charge of summons; while 66% were completed with no suspect identified

* This is similar to rates across England and Wales

Sir Mark also said the force needed "to be ruthless in rooting out those who are corrupting the integrity of the organisation; the racists, the misogynists".

"Of course the organisation hasn't deliberately supported them, but unless leadership, culture, systems, technology, resources are all lined up to do it, then a wish doesn't become a reality and it hasn't been a reality."

He added: "Everyone deserves a chance for an honest mistake but we can all see the difference between an honest mistake and toxic and corrupting behaviour."

The commissioner said the force had let the public down as well as people within the organisation, the "good majority who come to work and do amazing things on behalf of the public day in and day out, and have been let down by their colleagues who have not been robustly dealt with, and let down by not being set up properly to succeed with their job. That's what I'm trying to deal with".

Sir Mark, who says the Met is also reviewing its recruiting and vetting approaches, added: "I want to speak to the people who are angry but constructive because they want policing to succeed.

"I don't want to talk to people who are more interested in their own position or politics, I want to talk to the people who really care about policing.

"I don't care how angry they are, I want to talk to them if they want to help me fix it."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Confirms Preferential U.S. Trading Terms Will Continue After Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
U.S. and U.K. to Hold Talks on Diego Garcia as Iran Objects to Potential Military Use
UK Officials Weigh Possible Changes to Prince Andrew’s Position in Line of Succession Amid Ongoing Scrutiny
British Police Probe Epstein’s UK Airport Links and Expand High-Profile Inquiries
United Kingdom Denies U.S. Access to Military Base for Potential Iran Strike
British Co-founder of ASOS falls to his death from Pattaya apartment
Early 2026 Data Suggests Tentative Recovery for UK Businesses and Households
UK Introduces Digital-First Passport Rules for Dual Citizens in Border Control Overhaul
Unable to Access Live Financial Data for January UK Surplus Report
UK Government Considers Law to Remove Prince Andrew from Royal Line of Succession
UK ‘Working Closely with US’ to Assess Impact of Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
Trump Criticises UK Decision to Restrict Use of Bases in Potential Iran Strike Scenario
UK Foreign Secretary and U.S. State Chief Hold Strategic Talks as Tensions Rise Over Joint Air Base
Two teens arrested in France for alleged terror plot.
Nordic Fracture: How Criminal Scandals and Toxic Ties are Dismantling the Norwegian Crown
US Supreme Court Voids Trump’s Emergency Tariff Plan, Reshaping Trade Power and Fiscal Risk
King Charles III Opens London Fashion Week as Royal Family Faces Fresh Scrutiny
Trump’s Evolving Stance on UK Chagos Islands Deal Draws Renewed Scrutiny
House Democrat Says Former UK Ambassador Unable to Testify in Congressional Epstein Inquiry
No Record of Prince Andrew Arrest in UK as Claims Circulate Online
UK Has Not Granted US Approval to Launch Iran Strikes from RAF Bases, Government Confirms
AI Pricing Pressure Mounts as Chinese Models Undercut US Rivals and Margin Risks Grow
Global Counsel, Advisory Firm Co-Founded by Lord Mandelson, Enters Administration After Client Exodus
London High Court dispute over Ricardo Salinas’s $400mn Elektra share-backed bitcoin loan
UK Intensifies Efforts to Secure Saudi Investment in Next-Generation Fighter Jet Programme
Former Student Files Civil Claim Against UK Authorities After Rape Charges Against Peers Are Dropped
Archer Aviation Chooses Bristol for New UK Engineering Hub to Drive Electric Air Taxi Expansion
UK Sees Surge in Medical Device Testing as Government Pushes Global Competitiveness
UK Competition Watchdog Flags Concerns Over Proposed Getty Images–Shutterstock Merger
Trump Reasserts Opposition to UK Chagos Islands Proposal, Urges Stronger Strategic Alignment
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis advocates for a ban on minors using social media.
Liberal Senator Michaelia Cash Accuses Prime Minister of Lying to Australians
Meanwhile in Time Square, NYC One of the most famous landmarks
Jensen Huang just told the story of how Elon Musk became NVIDIA’s very first customer for their powerful AI supercomputer
A Lunar New Year event in Taiwan briefly came to a halt after a temple official standing beside President Lai Ching‑te suddenly vomited, splashing Lai’s clothing
Jillian Michaels reveals Bill Gates’ $55 million investment in mRNA vaccines turned into over $1 billion.
Ex-Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's arrested
Former British Prince Andrew Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office
Four Chagos Islanders Establish Permanent Settlement on Atoll
Unitree Robotics founder Wang Xingxing showcases future robot deployment during Spring Festival Gala.
UK Inflation Slows Sharply in January, Strengthening Case for Bank of England Rate Cut
Hide the truth, fake the facts, pretend the opposite, Britain is as usual
France President Macron says Free Speech is Bull Sh!t
Viktor Orbán getting massive praise for keeping Hungary safe, rich and migrant-free!
UK Inflation Falls to Ten-Month Low, Markets Anticipate Interest Rate Cut
UK House Prices Climb 2.4% in December as Market Shows Signs of Stabilisation
BAE Systems Predicts Sustained Expansion as Defence Orders Reach Record High
Pro-Palestine Activists Cleared of Burglary Charges Over Break-In at UK Israeli Arms Facility
Former Reform UK Councillors Form New Local Group Amid Party Fragmentation
Reform UK Pledges to Retain Britain’s Budget Watchdog as It Seeks Broader Economic Credibility
×