Domestic violence makes up 25% of violent crime in London

The London-wide print and poster campaign uses only words to engage directly with the abuser.

The advertising also warns men that they can be arrested even if a victim does not make a formal statement.

Commissioner Sir Ian Blair said abusers need to realise that men who commit domestic violence can no longer hide behind their partners' fear.

'Taking action'

He said: "We understand how distressing it is if the person you love subjects you to physical and psychological abuse, and how hard it is to report them to police.

"Since the new Service Level Agreement was signed with the Crown Prosecution Service, we are now taking action against offenders without the support of the victim and have seen a number of successful prosecutions of this kind."

The adverts will be put in places they least expect, such as pubs, football matches, cinemas, leisure centres, on the Tube and the sports sections of Metro and the Evening Standard.

It intentionally focuses on men who abuse women as they account for 85% of all reported incidents and the majority of violent assaults.

Strong message

The campaign is supported by the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone.

He said: "I strongly support the Metropolitan Police Service's new campaign to raise awareness of the criminal nature of domestic violence and to bring to account perpetrators of domestic violence."

He said domestic violence makes up 25% of violent crime in London and accounts for almost 1 in 5 homeless families.

A spokesperson for domestic violence charity Refuge applauded the campaign saying it "sends out an strong public message that domestic violence is a crime which will no longer by ignored".