A London assembly member has come to blows with Sadiq Khan during Mayor’s Question time over what he is doing to support victims of crime.

Conservative assembly member Shaun Bailey began by asking Mr Khan how many individual victims of crime he had met since become mayor.

Mr Khan said he regularly meets with victims of crime.

He said: “It is important we engage with victims of violent crime and I am determined to increase the services available to victims.”

Mr Bailey, who was keen to continue the subject of services available to victims of crime, said he had met with victims who feel like the police can’t protect them.

The mayor responded: “Victims don’t cooperate because they are worried about their own safety. It is not just victim support we need to educate the public but also that it is the police that must enforce justice, not them.

He added: “If people don’t report a crime there’s no chance of them getting any support.”

However, Mr Bailey pressed the mayor for more detail about what he was doing with government money that has been provided to the Greater London Authority (GLA) to help the victims of crime.

He said: “All your press releases talk about extra-urgent £10bn that the Government has given you access to so could we have some detail about what you are going to do about it?

“You are in a prime position to do something about this. Can I please ask you for some detail about what you will do with the Metropolitan Police about proceedings happening in London against people who commit knife crimes?”

The mayor talked about recent initiatives such as the Young Londoners Fund, a £45 million grant for groups that work with young people to help them stay out of crime.

On May 10 he announced he would also be giving an additional £1.4 to fund 34 new projects as part of this fund.

But Mr Bailey became angered at the mayor’s response and said: “You’re giving me details I don’t need you’ve already spoken about those – I can get them elsewhere. I just want to focus on victim support. That’s all I’m asking, just about victim support.”

Mr Khan answered: “On victim support what I’m doing differently in committing £47m of funds to direct services to support victims of crime over the next three years.

“What I’m doing differently is increasing the amount of victim support more than 15 percent from the previous mayor.”

Violent crime was also at the top of the agenda for other assembly members.

Umnesh Desai questioned the mayor on how he is working with the Metropolitan Police and the Home Office to tackle the rise in violent crime in London.

London’s death toll has now risen to over 62 since the beginning of 2018.

Mr Khan again referred to the Young Londoners Fund as well as the Violent Crime summit which took place at City Hall on April 10 which both the former Home Secretary, Amber Rudd and the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police attended.

But he added: “The police service in London has been cut and the the government is failing in its duty to keep London safe.”

“The home office’s own research says there is a link between cutting resources and an increase in violent crime.”

Last month a leaked Home Office document said that cuts to the police had caused an increase in violent crime.

Assembly member Onkar Sahota also asked what the mayor’s “public health” approach to tackling violent crime was.

Mr Khan said: “Crime is like a virus and a contagion, we must take actions on different aspects of crimes, drugs, knives, diversion of crime. We need to take a holistic approach, just approaching crime with an enforcement approach won’t work.”