This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: London has one of the lowest violent crime rates of any region in England and Wales, tops a global ranking of the best cities, and pays more in taxes than it receives back in public spending—but the public overestimates how likely Londoners are to become victims of crime, underestimates the capital's international standing, and has little idea it is the key contributor to public finances, according to a new study from the Policy Institute at King's College London. Misperceptions of crime, race, religion and life in the UK capital" also reveals that the public thinks the city's Muslim population is double its true size, while a third of the public believes there are "no-go" areas where Sharia law dominates and non-Muslims cannot enter.
The study finds that misperceptions about the capital divide sharply along party lines. Reform UK supporters are furthest from the facts on crime and London's Muslim population, which they guess makes up as much as half of the capital's population. Green and Labour supporters, meanwhile, make the opposite error, overestimating how White British London is.
But the public is not wrong about everything. It correctly identifies that shoplifting, theft from the person, sexual offenses and violence rose between 2019 and 2025—even if a majority wrongly thinks total crime in the capital has increased, when it has in fact fallen slightly. Based on two surveys of 2,164 and 3,969 adults, conducted with YouGov between March 23 and 27, 2026, for the Mistaken Britain research series, the study shows that misperceptions about London are closely linked to how warmly people feel toward the capital and their views on the direction it is heading.
Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. d research that matter—daily or weekly. Misperceptions about London are not just factual errors—they track how warmly people feel about the capital and the direction it's heading, as well as how they view other realities. Professor Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King's College London, said, "London has become a lightning rod in our national debate—deeply connected to arguments about crime, immigration and the direction of the country—with the sense that 'London has fallen' now a recurring theme in political, media and social media narratives.
This study shows people don't just have varying opinions about the capital; they're working from different facts about it—with many being far too negative about the realities in London. "And those facts line up neatly with politics. Reform UK and Conservative supporters tend to imagine a city far more dangerous, violent and in decline than it really is.
They also hugely overestimate the Muslim share of the capital's population, and are more likely to believe there are areas wholly controlled by Muslims and excluding others. But Labour, Lib Dem and Green supporters have their own blind spots, underestimating the crimes that genuinely have risen and the diversity of the capital. "Each of us tends to see the London that fits the story we already believe, reflecting both our own biases and the messages we'll see from an increasingly fragmented and polarized media, social media and politics.
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