Violent crime recorded by police in England and Wales has risen by 19%.
The number of homicides including murder and manslaughter has risen from 649 to 739 an increase of 14%, it is the highest total since 2007. Robbery went up by 17% as did the recorded sexual offences according to the Home Office data released by ONS (Office of National Statistics).
The figures cover 12 months to the end of September 2018. Overall crimes recorded by police went up by 7% in that period with a total of 5,723,182 offences recorded.
A 3% increase in vehicle offences, this is mainly due to the 10% increase of the subcategory of “Theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle”.
Helen Ross from the Office for National Statistics Centre for Crime and Justice, said: “In recent decades we’ve seen the overall level of crime falling, but in the last year, it remained level. There are variations within this overall figure, depending on the type of crime. Burglary, shoplifting and computer misuse are decreasing but others, such as vehicle offences and robbery are rising. We have also seen increases in some types of “lower-volume, high-harm” violence including offences involving knives or sharp instruments.”
John Apter, chairman of the Police Federation, which represents thousands of lower rank officers across England and Wales, said: “Society just isn’t as safe as it once was, and although the police service is doing everything within its power, we are swimming against the tide and it is the public who are being let down.”
There has been an increase in stalking and harassment offences recorded by police which have risen by 41%. It was likely that improvement in the way crimes are recorded were likely to be behind the rise.
The police-recorded figures on violent crime were looked at alongside information from the NHS, which showed there had been:
- An 8% increase in the number of offences involving knives or sharp instruments
- A 15% rise in the number of admissions to hospital in England for assaults involving a sharp instrument
- A 4% decrease in the number of police-recorded incidents involving firearms
Chief Constable Bill Skelly, of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said: “Rising crime, increased terrorist activity and fewer police officers have put serious strain on the policing we offer to the public,” he added.
“We are determining the additional capabilities and investment we need to drive down violence and catch more criminals – and we will make the case at the next government spending review.”
