Another day in Sadiq Khan's lawless London: Mayor faces fresh questions over ... trends now
Today's horrifying sword rampage in East London will renew focus on the issue of knife crime in the capital in the lead up to the mayoral elections.
Five people, including two police officers, were injured after being attacked by a man wielding a large blade near Hainault underground station just before 7am.
A 36-year-old man was arrested at the scene and is in custody, police said - adding that the incident is not thought to be terror related.
Knife crime is a serious problem in London and will be on the minds of many voters this Thursday - with Sadiq Khan accused of 'completely losing control' of the streets.
The Mayor has overseen a 38 per cent increase in knife offences over his eight year tenure, and last year the number of murders on his watch surpassed 1,000.
His Tory rival Susan Hall has put violent crime front and centre of her campaign, and last night vowed to 'get a grip' on crime by recruiting 1,500 more police officers.
A man seen today 'wielding a sword' on the streets of Hainault, where five people were injured in a stabbing
Sadiq Khan - pictured yesterday at a campaign event in Croydon - has been accused of 'completely losing control' of the streets
Rishi Sunak also weighed in on the issue yesterday, claiming that rising knife crime in London will 'shine a spotlight on the reality of Labour in power'.
Fresh pressure has been heaped on Mr Khan by the release of yet more grim figures showing another spike in knife and gun related crime last year.
A total of 14,626 knife offences were recorded by police in the capital last year - an average of 40 a day and up by a fifth on 2022.
There was also an increase in gun crime, with 1,208 recorded over 2023 - up by more than 200 compared to the previous year.
Many have laid the blame squarely on Mr Khan, with policing minister Chris Philp blaming a fall in stop and search.
The use of stop and search powers by the Met has reduced by 44 per cent over the last two years, while the number of subsequent arrests is down by 28 per cent.
The Mayor is a critic of the tactic and previously pledged to 'do all in my power to further cut its use' over concerns it targeted ethnic minorities.
Taking to X, Mr Philp said knife crime was up 'as a consequence' of 'fewer knives being taken off streets'.
Knife crime in the capital disproportionately affects young people, as the tragic rollcall of teenage homicide victims has shown.
This morning's incident in Hainault sparked a massive emergency services response
Another photo of a man wielding a sword near Hainault tube station this morning
Harry Pitman, 16, who was stabbed to death while waiting to watch the New Year's Eve fireworks on Primrose Hill, was the 21st teenager to be killed in London last year - compared to 14 the year before.
Among those who died, 18 were stabbed, two were shot and one was killed after his moped was struck by a car.
In September 15-year-old Elianne Andam was stabbed while she made her way to school in Croydon - the worst affected borough.
Jasna Badzak, whose 22-year-old son Sven was knifed to death in Kilburn in 2021 during a shopping trip to Waitrose, has claimed criminals now 'rule' the capital under Mr Khan.
The former Tory activist, 52, who has been left bedridden from the stress of losing her son in a case of mistaken identity. told The Standard: 'Knife crime is completely out of control because of Sadiq Khan.
'More and more young men are dying and will continue to
