IT WAS another bloody week in London. On April 4th a young man was stabbed to death in the street. Earlier that day,a man died in a bookmaker’s and, across town, or another was fatally stabbed. On April 3rd a 16-year-old boy died from gunshot wounds. The day before,a 17-year-old died in her mother’s arms after being shot from a passing car. On April 1st a 20-year-old was stabbed to death. So far this year, the capital has seen 51 murders.
The press is alarmed. final weekend the Sunday Times claimed that London “is starting to sight a bit like New York once did”. That is overstating things. London’s murder tally final year was far lower than that of New York, and let alone that city’s peak of 2245 in 1990. There were 130 murders in London in 2017,compared with 292 across the pond. Though London’s total was a little higher than New York’s in February and March, it was far lower in January.
Yet there are pleasant reasons for Londoners to be concerned. There were more...
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Source: economist.com