Lucy GilderBBC Verify journalist

On his way back to the US on Air Force One yesterday, President Donald Trump criticised Sadiq Khan’s record as London mayor.

He told reporters on the plane that Khan is “among the worst mayors in the world” and that “crime in London is through the roof”.

Trump and the London mayor have been feuding for a decade. Khan spoke out about Trump’s Muslim travel ban proposal during his first presidential campaign, while Trump described Khan as a “nasty person” during his last UK visit in July.

But does Trump’s latest criticism of Khan hold any water?

In the year to March 2025 police recorded crime was up 1% in the Metropolitan Police force area – which the London mayor oversees – compared to the year before. In England and Wales it is down 2%, the latest figures show., external

Although overall crime is up slightly in London, several violent crimes, such as homicide and violence with injury, have fallen in the last year.

Current figures show that the rate of crime per 1,000 people in the capital was among the highest in England and Wales (105.5), but the rate in Greater Manchester was even higher (108.2).

Compared to when Khan first entered office in 2016, crime in the Metropolitan Police force area has shot up by about a quarter. But in England and Wales it increased by a third over the same period.

Police recorded data is generally not considered the best measure of longer-term crime trends, because changes to police recording practices can impact the number of crimes it reports. But to assess Khan’s record we need to look at crime by police force area, which is only possible using police recorded figures.