Armour for north London police
Scotland Yard has ordered police in north London to wear bullet-proof vests at all times because of soaring gun crime - the first time such an order has been made in mainland Britain.
Officers in Haringey have been told protective armour should be worn on the streets even on routine patrols after a dramatic rise in the number of firearms offences.
In the past 12 weeks there were 300 emergency calls in Haringey in relation to alleged firearms, 109 of these resulted in evidence of guns being used or seen.
Bob Elder, chairman of the Police Federation's constables' branch, who is based at Haringey, said: "My colleagues are increasingly worried. In Haringey there are 999 calls about firearms activity on an almost daily basis.
"There is a heightened awareness of firearms issues in boroughs such as Haringey and Hackney and there is now a directive that officers should wear body armour on operational duty as a health and safety issue.
"We have pretty strong gun laws in this country but they do not seem to be having any effect."
At present, officers in the Met are not obliged to wear body armour except at times of greater risk. In practice more and more officers are opting to wear it.
The news comes as police seized a deadly Mac 10 submachine gun and uncovered a firearms factory in Haringey at the weekend.
The US-made Mac 10, capable of firing 20 rounds a second, was seized in a raid on a flat in Bounds Green. Police also found 100 rounds of ammunition. Two men aged 21 have been charged with firearms offences.
In a separate operation police found what they described as a firearms "reactivation" factory in Tottenham. In a flat in Ingleborough Court police found vices, metal gun barrels and other weapons-making paraphernalia.
Haringey police are working closely with the Operation Trident squad which investigates gangsters in the crack cocaine trade.
Borough police commander Stephen James said: "I am delighted by the success of these operations, which have disrupted the access to firearms by criminals. I know the use and recovery of firearms in London is now almost routine."
