Police in Ealing seized a total of 12 e-bikes and e-scooters and arrested one rider during a crackdown on the illegal use of the vehicles along Uxbridge Road last month. The Met said the operation reflected the tougher approach promised in its new three-year plan, launched today (9 December 2025).
Officers set up at several locations along Uxbridge Road on 29 November 2025, an area the Met described as a hotspot for dangerous riding and thefts linked to e-bikes and e-scooters, including phone snatching and other anti-social behaviour.
The plan, A New Met for London: Phase 2, promises “more trust, less crime and high standards” through “precision” neighbourhood policing, a renewed drive against knife and gun crime, and better support for victims.
The Met said it would focus on reducing crime and anti-social behaviour in local areas, alongside efforts to reduce serious violence, including gun and knife crime. It also pledged to improve the service provided to victims, make officers more visible and responsive to local concerns, strengthen partnerships in communities and cut bureaucracy “to put crime-fighting first”.
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said Londoners were “at the heart of everything we do”. He pledged continued focus on violence against women and girls and naming the everyday crimes that hit communities hardest: shoplifting, phone theft and the dangerous use of e-bikes and e-scooters.
The force claimed it was arresting more than 1,000 extra suspects every month, that homicides were at a five-year low, and injuries from violence were lower than in any other major UK city. It also said it had solved more than twice as many crimes linked to violence against women and girls.
Bassam Mahfouz, the London Assembly member for Ealing and Hillingdon, told EALING.NEWS: “With record investment from both the Mayor and the Government, it’s essential that the Met rebuilds public trust, starting with highly visible, community-focused policing. That’s why I’m delighted to see funding for a dedicated new team for Ealing Broadway town centre. We’re already seeing promising results: mobile-phone smuggling gangs dismantled, neighbourhood crime in Ealing down 16%, violent crime with injury down 8.3%, murders at a five-year low, and charges for rapists of women and girls doubling.”
He added: “The introduction of live facial recognition is also proving to be a genuine game-changer. It’s already helping to identify shoplifters and other offenders, and I welcome its wider use to keep our streets safe and ensure those who threaten our community are brought to justice.
“There is clearly a lot of progress, but the police will be the first to admit there is still much more to do.”
Technology would play a bigger role, the Met said, with live facial recognition expanded across all boroughs and first-responder drones stationed around London to provide real-time aerial intelligence. The Met said live facial recognition had led to more than 1,000 arrests since 2024.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, welcomed the plan, saying progress had been supported by £1.16bn funding from City Hall this year, but added that there was “a lot more work to do” so that every Londoner felt served and protected.
