AOAV’s review of unsolved murders in London over the past decade found that cases are far more likely to remain unresolved when the victim is a young Black man or when the killing involves a firearm, raising questions about trust in policing, witness cooperation and unequal access to justice.

In a recent Times Radio debate, former police officer Norman Brennan advocated for arming all UK police officers, citing rising crime; however, official statistics indicate that violent crime has significantly declined since the 1990s, with homicides at 9.5 per million in 2024 , and police firearm discharges remain exceedingly rare, with only two incidents in over 17,500 armed operations in 2023–24 , suggesting that Brennan’s proposal lacks empirical support and could undermine the UK’s effective model of policing by consent.