Newham is one of the top five boroughs in the capital for crime, a count has revealed.

In total there were 34,466 crimes committed in the borough over the last financial year, according to figures released on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics.

The borough has the fourth highest total across London with Westminster seeing the most with 57,496 crimes. The City of London saw the least (5,392).

There were 13 killings during that period, the highest in the capital, with robberies (2,076), drug (2,185) and sex offences (926) all rising on the year before. The year to March 2017 saw three homicides in Newham.

Asst Com Martin Hewitt, responsible for frontline policing, said: “The Met continues to experience a very busy and challenging time against the backdrop of significant reductions in resources.

“I am very concerned about the rise in crime in the capital, particularly murder, violent crime and knife crime.

“My thoughts are with the victims’ families of these tragic and horrific crimes which have brought untold misery to countless people.”

Newham mayor Rokhsana Fiaz said in response to the numbers: “I have promised to improve youth services to help address the rise in violence and street crime that so devastatingly impacts the lives of our young people. In the face of the drastic cuts I have prioritised young people – and have pledged to double the number of youth zones.

“I have held two youth forums including one attended by Sophie Linden, London’s deputy mayor for policing and crime to talk directly to young people about their experience of crime, and their ideas about how to make the borough a safer place.

“I’ve also met with Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London to discuss youth safety and how we can work together to address this worrying trend.

“I am establishing a new youth safety board, which will bring together key partners including the borough police and actively involve young people in developing solutions to the scourge of violence and crime.”

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “These latest national statistics confirm that violent crime is ripping communities apart and devastating too many lives.

“And they confirm the terrible consequences of a government in denial about the terrible impact its cuts have had in tackling crime and the causes of crime.

“The figures must surely serve as a wake-up call for the government to change its ways.”

Police minister Nick Hurd said every violent crime was a concern and the government was taking action to tackle it.

“We recognise crime is changing and that police demand is becoming increasingly complex,” he said.

He welcomed a shift towards people reporting hidden crimes and that more victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence felt empowered to come forward.

Businesses in Newham were hit with 2,220 cases of shoplifting, near the previous year’s total of 2,117. There were 1,716 cases of stalking or harrassment the year to March 2018 compared to 1,536 over the 12 months before.

Cases of violence with injury rose from 3,239 to 3,270 over the same period.