Number of terror arrests hits record high in wake of London and Manchester attacks

The number of terror-related arrests in the UK has surged by 68% in a single year, new figures reveal, hitting a record high. A total of 379 such arrests were made in the year ending July 2017, according to government data. Those numbers equate to more than one arrest per day and are the highest since records began in 2001.

The numbers includes a series of arrests that were made following the Manchester and London attacks. The recent spate of terror incidents have placed police and security forces under strain, an admission that was made by the Home Secretary Amber Rudd in June. She called for a review to help the services which had been "pulled very tightly".

Neil Basu, deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, said: "While the terrorist threat has increased in recent months, so has our activity, reflected by this significant increase in arrests.

"We're taking every possible opportunity to disrupt terrorist activity – be it making arrests for terrorism offences, intervening where there are signs of radicalisation, or working with communities to prevent terrorists operating in their area.

"Police, together with the security services, are determined to make the UK as hostile an environment for terrorists as possible."

Of all the arrests that were made, just under a third resulted in a charge and half were released. The numbers also reveal the highest ever number of female arrests, with a total of 54 women, including 17 under the age of 18, detained.

According to the Home Office, 91% of those in custody held Islamist extremist reviews, while 5% were from the far-right. More than 600 stop and searches were carried out in London, though only 8% of these resulted in an arrest.