Labour fail to defend record as Lib Dems call for Cleaner and Safer Streets in Southwark
Southwark Liberal Democrats have tabled a motion to this evening’s (12th November) Council Assembly calling for urgent action to tackle rising crime, antisocial behaviour and filthy streets across the borough.
The motion sets out a practical plan to make Southwark safer and cleaner. It includes doubling community safety wardens, repairing every broken streetlight within 48 hours, and reducing fly-tipping through stronger enforcement and community clean-up days.
A key part of the plan is protecting local policing infrastructure. The motion calls on the Mayor of London to reverse plans to cut the opening hours of Walworth police front counter, which is now the borough’s only public point of contact with the police at night. Liberal Democrats have made this a central campaign locally, after residents repeatedly raised concerns about the difficulty of reporting crimes in person.
The campaign has been backed by Luke Taylor MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for London, who recently joined Southwark councillors for a walkabout with the police to highlight local safety issues. Last week, Luke raised the issue directly with the Deputy Prime Minister during Prime Minister’s Questions, challenging the Government over the closure of police front counters and the decline in visible neighbourhood policing across London.
Labour councillors have not even put forward an amendment to the motion, showing they cannot defend their record after 15 years in charge of Southwark Council.
Southwark now has the fifth highest crime rate in London, with robbery more than four times and theft from the person more than eight times the national average. So far this year there have already been 3,000 more reported crimes than in the whole of 2024. Only half of broken streetlights are repaired, taking on average three weeks, and of the 29,000 fly-tipping incidents recorded over the last five years, just 7% led to fines and not a single prosecution.
Cllr Jane Salmon, the Liberal Democrats’ Community Safety Spokesperson, said:
“Labour have run out of excuses. After 15 years in charge of Southwark Council, nine years of a Labour Mayor, and a Labour Government in Westminster, crime is rising, streets are dirtier than ever, and residents feel unsafe in their own communities.
“When Labour can’t even bring themselves to amend our motion, it’s clear they have no answers and no defence of their failure.
“The Liberal Democrats are offering real solutions, with more community safety officers, faster streetlight repairs, and a renewed commitment to keep Walworth police front counter open 24/7 so residents always have somewhere safe to turn. Southwark residents deserve better.”