Notting Hill Carnival Must Be Made Safer, Say Police Chiefs

Notting Hill Carnival poses a "real risk to public safety" and in 2016 saw four stabbings so serious the victims nearly died, according to a report.

Police are now warning Mayor of London Sadiq Khan that the event – at which 450 arrests were made last year – must be made safer.

The carnival is one of the largest in Europe, with up to 7,000 police on duty, 50,000 performers and around one million visitors.

In its latest report, the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee said the annual event urgently needed rethinking. The report said:

"The police warn of the risk of a 'Hillsborough' scale tragedy; it would be foolish to ignore these voices.

"Each year, and last year was no exception, we came exceptionally close to a major catastrophic failure of public safety where members of the public would face serious injury."

In August, the Metropolitan Police Federation said its rank and file officers experienced "dread" of policing the carnival, which saw 43 officers injured at the event in 2016, eight of whom required hospital treatment.

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