Following a meeting of the government’s Crime and Justice Taskforce on Monday evening, Downing Street said it would take “immediate steps” to give “further reassurance” to women and girls in the wake of Sarah Everard’s death.
No 10 said it would be doubling the size of the Safer Streets fund to £45m which provides local measures such as better lighting and CCTV.
Undercover police will be sent to clubs, bars and popular nightspots to relay intelligence about predatory or suspicious offenders to uniformed officers, in pilots of so-called Project Vigilant, rolled out across the country.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson chaired the meeting saying the government was bringing in “landmark legislation” to toughen up sentences and put more police on streets.
He said: “We are also now taking further steps to provide greater reassurance, such as providing better lighting and greater use of CCTV in parks and routes women may take on their walks home.
“Ultimately, we must drive out violence against women and girls and make every part of the criminal justice system work to better protect and defend them.”
Sarah disappeared while walking home in south London on 3 March, with her remains being found in Kent a week later.
Her killing has sparked a reckoning over violence and harassment experienced by women, as well as provoking calls for meaningful change.
Policing tactics at a vigil in memory of the 33-year-old on Saturday, with officers grabbing several women and leading them away in handcuffs, have been criticised.