Sadiq Khan said yesterday he was ‘angered and heartbroken’ by the London killings

Sadiq Khan said yesterday he was ‘angered and heartbroken’ by the London killings – but admitted he had yet to visit any of the bereaved families.

The Labour Mayor of London, who has been criticised for his slow response to the spiralling numbers of deaths, put out a statement which said the loss of life was ‘devastating’, and promising that criminals who use knives ‘will feel the full force of the law’.

He blamed spending cuts for the rising levels of street violence.

But Mr Khan, who has been accused by former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith of going ‘missing in action’, acknowledged in a radio interview that he has yet to meet any relatives of victims.

He told LBC: ‘I’ve spoken to a number of people over the last few days.’

Pressed by the interviewer, he added: ‘No, I haven’t spoken to the bereaved families, but I’ve got a deputy mayor and police commissioner. The point is that we are a team.

‘I accept there are elections in four or five weeks’ time, and politicians will have an attack. That’s part of politics.

‘But we’ve got bereaved families, we’ve got two teenagers who have lost their lives in just the last week.

But he admitted he had yet to visit any of the bereaved families. The Labour Mayor of London has been criticised for his slow response

‘I’ve got full confidence in the Met Police service but I’m not going to apologise for making the point of the context of the cuts over the last few years. One of the jobs of the mayor is to be the champion and advocate of our city and that means standing up for the our city when we are facing mammoth cuts.’

He told Sky News: ‘Six weeks ago I asked the Prime Minister to meet with me and the commissioner to discuss how we can together grapple with this problem. She declined that meeting and I’m asking today for her to meet with me.’

Mr Khan’s office put out a tweet which said: ‘I’m angered and heartbroken by the recent violent deaths on our streets. Met Police patrols have already been increased and extra stop-and-search powers are in place.’

In a further statement, Mr Khan said: ‘It’s been devastating to see lives – so many of them young lives – senselessly ended and more families left in despair. Let me be clear – there is no reason to carry a knife. To anyone who does – they will be caught, and they will feel the full force of the law.’

The statements were Mr Khan’s first intervention in the crisis in more than a fortnight. On March 20, he announced money for anti-knife crime initiatives.