A senior Brent councillor said the council will continue to work with the police on gang violence after 29 people were arrested in the borough as part of an ongoing operation.

Officers carried out a series of raids last week as part of Project Salus, which targets those involved with gangs and class A drugs.

Using intelligence, they visited a series of addresses in Brent, issuing several warrants and arrests.

Cllr Tom Miller, responsible for community safety at Brent Council, praised the Metropolitan Police for its efforts and promised that the council would continue to support officers.

He said: “I would like to thank the police. This is a significant result for residents and the culmination of a lot of hard work.

“We are committed to working closely with our police counterparts and supporting operations like this.

“Whether through our CCTV network, by cracking down on those who engage in low-level anti-social behaviour, or by making better use of city planning to ‘design out’ crime.”

Project Salus, which launched in December 2018, has led to more than 160 arrests, 80 per cent of which have resulted in charges.

Detective Superintendent Jim McKee, who has overseen the campaign, said it is important to tackle those who are harming society.

He said: “The aim of this project has been to target gang members responsible for stabbings and shootings in the area and to seriously disrupt and dismantle their networks selling drugs.

“Many of the individuals we are targeting are people involved in the most serious violent crimes and are operating dangerous drugs lines.”

Brent Council and the police reminded the public that they can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 if they suspect crime is being committed.