PA MediaA popular central London viewpoint where thousands gather to watch the new year’s fireworks will be closed this year after dedicated parks police were scrapped.
Primrose Hill in Camden, which has panoramic views of the capital, saw an estimated 30,000 revellers head there in 2024 to see in the new year.
This year it will be shut, with the gates locked from 20:00 GMT on 30 December until 06:00 on New Year’s Day.
Earlier this year, the Met Police announced it would disband the Royal Parks police, which helped respond to serious crime in London’s greenspaces, as part of plans to plug a £260m funding gap but it said it had not made the decision to close the park for new year’s.
There had been concerns about the safety of celebrations at the park after 16-year-old Harry Pitman was fatally stabbed there during the New Year’s Eve fireworks viewing in 2023.
Areece Lloyd-Hall, 18, was jailed for a minimum of 16 years in November for his murder.
‘Limited controls’
The Royal Parks charity, which manages Primrose Hill, previously said the capacity to manage crowds of the size usually watching the fireworks event would be “severely diminished” in part due to the closure of the Metropolitan Police’s Royal Parks Operational Command Unit.
A Royal Parks spokesperson said the decision to shut Primrose Hill for New Year’s Eve was “not taken lightly”.
They added that as it was not an organised event but a gathering in open parkland, it had “limited controls that we can deploy to ensure public safety”.
The Metropolitan Police said it was “not accurate to suggest” the decision to shut Primrose Hill was necessary because the Royal Parks policing team was disbanded.
A force spokesperson said the decision to close the park was taken by the Royal Parks, not the police.
“Officers from that team made up just 15 of the more than 145 officers who were deployed to Primrose Hill on New Year’s Eve last year. This is similar to the makeup of deployments in previous years,” they said.
Commander Nick John, who is charge of the Met’s New Year’s Eve policing, said: “The Royal Parks are urging people not to try to gather at Primrose Hill this year and we would echo those calls.
“Please make alternative plans. Anyone trying to access the park will find that it is not possible.”
EPAElsewhere, Scotland Yard urged people to plan their travel into and out of London and head to organised events where possible.
People have also been warned not to try to go to the Mayor of London’s fireworks event, centred around the London Eye and Big Ben, as tickets have sold out.
Commander John said New Year’s Eve was “always one of the busiest nights of the year for us” which involved months of planning.
“The most visible part of our policing plan will be the officers in central London, but it extends right across the city.
“We’re there to provide a reassuring presence, to deter those who might want to take advantage of the crowds to commit crime and to respond decisively to any incidents.”
He also urged people to only call 999 in a genuine emergency.
“Every unnecessary call – whether to the police, the ambulance service or the fire brigade – risks delaying us getting urgent help to those who need it most.”
