Those found guilty of knife crime could face GPS tracking after leaving prison under new measures from the Mayor of London.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan today announced knife crime offenders could be subject to GPS tagging as part of a pilot scheme, which will begin on February 18, to reduce reoffending.

The scheme will target offenders who have served custodial sentences for knife related crimes such as knife possession, robbery, wounding, GBH and aggravated burglary.

Mr Khan said: “Violent crime in London is unacceptably high, and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner and I are doing everything in our power to crack down on violence and knife crime.

“The causes of violent crime are extremely complex and involve deep-seated problems – such as poverty, inequality, social alienation and a lack of opportunities for young people – that enforcement alone won’t solve and have been made much worse by huge Government cuts to the police and preventative services.

“In London, we are leading the way on pioneering enforcement work to tackle violent crime.”

The pilot programme will operate in Lewisham, Lambeth, Croydon and Southwark for one year and will track up to 100 offenders.

Those who are considered more likely to reoffend will have their movements automatically checked against the sites of reported crimes – significant matches will be shared with local police.

Both the police and probation services will have access to the data.

Steve O’Connell, the chairman of the London Assembly police and crime committee, said: “It is welcome that the Mayor taking more steps to tackle knife crime and we will be monitoring the effectiveness of tagging offenders going forward.

“Many different measures must be taken in the fight against violent crime. Dealing with re-offending is important, but it is equally critical to prevent young people from picking up a knife in the first place.”

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) violent crimes between September 2017 and 2018 increased by 6.1 per cent in the capital.

In the same period knife crime rose by 7.8 per cent.