Can the Met stop responding to mental health calls?

‘The basic mission for which the police exist is to prevent crime and disorder.’ Those are the words of Sir Robert Peel, widely regarded as the founder of modern policing. In 1829, as home secretary, he established the Metropolitan Police in London, the first full-time professional force.

But if Sir Robert, who went on to serve twice as prime minister, were alive today he would surely be appalled at how that ‘basic mission’, the first of his nine ‘principles of policing’, has been eroded. Since the years of austerity, as health and social care agencies have become increasingly stretched, it has been left to the police to plug the gaps, tracking down missing hospital patients, responding to concerns about people’s welfare and dealing with those at risk of suicide. It’s estimated that 83 per cent of calls into police control rooms across England and Wales do not relate to crime, with 40 per cent of police time taken up by issues concerning mental health and vulnerability.