Crime figures show biggest rise for more than a decade

Despite coming to power on a triumphalist wave, pledging to be tough on crime and launching a string of initiatives – including Jack Straw’s much-vaunted ‘three strikes-and-you’re-out’ policy – the Government will this month be forced into releasing figures showing that the overall number of offences in England and Wales rose by more than 6% in the year to March 2002.
On 13 June, Home Secretary David Blunkett launched the official Home Office report for 2001-2002, at the same time suggesting that “overall crime is down, but we [the Government] still have much to do”.
In truth, the figures that Blunkett is to reveal will show that 38 of the 43 police forces in England and Wales have seen an increase in the total number of crimes committed. On average, around 850 more crimes have been reported daily than during the previous 12 months.
The figures will come as a severe blow to Blunkett and Prime Minister Tony Blair, who have pinned their political agenda on a constantly falling crime rate – and often used that fact to counter the rising tide of criticism over increases in street muggings and robberies. This year’s figures reverse a long-standing trend of falling crime, where decreases have been posted by the Home Office since the early 1990s.
The latest crime wave seems to be spread throughout both rural and urban areas. West Yorkshire Police – covering Leeds and Bradford – has reported a 15% increase in crime rates. Suffolk’s rate has risen by 14%, Derbyshire’s by 10% and Greater Manchester Police has reported a 4% rise.
Apparently, the increase in crime is being driven by unexpected increases in the number of burglaries now taking place. Burglaries are up by 5% within the Metropolitan Police boundaries, while street crime has risen by nearly 40%. This is thought to have been fuelled by increasing drug use – primarily heroin and crack cocaine – which largely accounts for the GB pound 1.25 billion cost of shop theft reported by the British Retail Consortium.
In an exclusive report published on 16 June, The Sunday Times obtained final crime figures from 33 of the 43 police forces, plus forecast figures from nine others. Although a small number of forces have altered the way in which they count crime, this is unlikely to have affected figures significantly – and, as Sunday Times reporter Tom Robbins states, “will not give ministers at the Home Office an excuse”.
Back in 2000, Government ministers set themselves a target of cutting house burglaries by 26% and, by 2005, cutting back on robberies in five designated urban areas by anything up to 18%. While last May’s IFSEC Exhibition and Conference was running in Birmingham, Prime Minister Blair promised that robbery would be under control in the Capital and the UK’s other major cities, but that promise is now looking a little hollow. The Metropolitan Police Force – among others – is crying out for more funding.

EBOOK: Lessons from IFSEC 2023 – Big Tech, Martyn’s Law and Drone Threats

Read IFSEC Insider’s exclusive IFSEC eBook and explore the key takeaways from the 2023 show!

Navigate the impact of Big Tech on access control, gain insights from Omdia’s analysts on video surveillance trends, and explore sessions covering topics like futureproofing CCTV networks, addressing the rising drone threat, and the crucial role of user proficiency in security technology.

There's also an exclusive interview with Figen Murray, the driver behind Martyn's Law legislation.

 

Get your copy today!