Sadiq Khan has demanded a “national strategy to tackle the complex causes of crime”, while highlighting data on the link between the cost of living and a rise in certain offences across London.

In a speech on Thursday morning, the mayor pointed to modelling from the London School of Economics (LSE) showing that a 10% rise in Londoners’ living costs is accompanied by an eight per cent overall increase in violence, robberies, shoplifting, burglary and theft.

The mayor said that government austerity is jeopardising progress made in tackling crime and violence in London, and that there must be a renewed national focus on the causes of crime.