Home Secretary Priti Patel joined police on a county lines raid in south London this morning in which a haul of crack and heroin were seized.

Officers carried out a search warrant on Brighton Terrace, Brixton, arresting a 20-year-old man on suspicion of being concerned in the supply Class A drugs.

A search at the address is ongoing, but so far officers have recovered the phone believed to be used to control a county line, along with the drugs themselves.

Ms Patel said: “I have made rolling up county lines drugs gangs an absolute priority.

"We have provided police with £25 million to tackle this exploitative trade and I have today seen first-hand the impact of that investment.

"The police will continue having my full support in the fight to keep the public safe.”

The Met have worked with forces in the counties surrounding London and say investigations are now taking weeks rather than months to complete as part of Operation Orochi.

Detective Chief Inspector Ant Jones from the Metropolitan Police Service, said: “Every single day officers from the Met are working hand in glove with colleagues from other police forces to arrest those involved in running County Lines routes from the capital into the counties.

“Operations like this have been so successful through the strong relationships between forces who are equally committed to stopping County Lines routes.

"Through this approach we are able to disrupt and dismantle these lines from the centre and protect the vulnerable children and adults who are often coerced into running substances across the UK on behalf of these networks.

“This collaborative approach has enabled us to target and arrest County Lines criminals more than ever before.

"This activity will increase and intensify in the coming weeks as we continue to bring those responsible for this criminality to justice.”