Nearly two-fifths of robberies in London last year were for mobile phones

London mayor and Met police commissioner say manufacturers must make phones less attractive to thieves

Nearly two-fifths of robberies in London last year were for mobile phones, it has emerged, as police warned of rising thefts and insisted technology companies must design out the crime.

An attack where violence was used or threatened was carried out roughly every 55 minutes, amounting to 9,500 offences. The Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, and the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, said the technology companies making phones, such as Apple and Samsung, could do more to stop them being attractive to thieves, such as by making it harder to re-register phones to new users.