LOCAL MP STEPS UP OPPOSITION TO CLOSURE OF FRONT COUNTER AT TWICKENHAM POLICE STATION
Local MP Munira Wilson has stepped her opposition to the controversial closure of the front counter at Twickenham Police station despite the Met Police’s recent confirmation that the closure will go ahead.
Following pressure from MPs and campaigners, the Met has now revised its plans, with 19 front counters set to close, down from the original 37.
However, with Twickenham’s front counter still facing the axe, Munira continues to press the Government, the Metropolitan Police and the Mayor of London on these plans, including raising the issue in Parliament and in the media.
“The front counter at Twickenham Police Station is vital for reporting crime and building trust and relationships with the local community, yet the closure would leave the entirety of Richmond Borough without a single public access point for our local police,” said Munira. “I will continue to raise my concerns at the highest levels on behalf of residents.”
On 23 October, Munira co-signed a letter from London’s Liberal Democrat MPs and London Assembly Members to the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, urging her to halt police station counter closures and keep a 24/7 station in every borough.
The letter also called on the Chancellor to use the forthcoming Budget to deliver an emergency funding uplift for the Metropolitan Police Service, among other actions.
In their letter, the Lib Dems warned that the Met faces “a perfect storm: crushing operational and capital pressures, the urgent need for deep-rooted cultural reform, and a serious loss of public trust – all while being asked to do more with less.”
Munira also wrote to the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, recently – pointing out that the decision reneges on his manifesto commitment to maintain front counters in all London boroughs. Munira co-signed the letter with Richmond Park MP Sarah Olney and Gareth Roberts, Leader of Richmond Council and London Assembly Member for the South West constituency.
Last month, Munira challenged the new Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood on closures of police station front counters and asked the new policing minister, Sarah Jones MP, to properly fund the Met and protect community policing.