Burglaries up 14% on last year, annual crime figures show

British Crime Survey reports increase in domestic burglaries in England and Wales There has been a 14% rise in domestic burglaries and a 6% rise in violent crime in the past year, according to the annual crime figures for 2010/11 . However, overall crime levels have remained flat or continued on a downward trend, with police crime figures showing a 4% fall and the more authoritative British Crime Survey indicating a 1% rise in overall crime levels. The Home Office said they indicate the remarkable reduction in the crime rate in England and Wales recorded in recent years is slowing down. But Home Office statisticians said that despite predictions of crime rises linked to the recession and rising unemployment, there was no consistent evidence of “upward pressure” on crimes involving property as a result of the difficult economic conditions. They said, however, that a 4% rise in the theft of unattended mobile phones and purses in the “other theft” category could be an early sign that larger increases were on the way. The official statisticians also said the 14% rise in domestic burglaries reported by the British Crime Survey over 2010/11 was out of line with the trend for the past five years. They said it should be seen in the context of the burglary rate for the previous year, 2009/10, being the lowest for nearly 30 years. Police crime figures reported a 3% fall in burglaries across England and Wales. The rest of the crime figures, published on Thursday, show continuing falls across other crime categories, including a remarkable 9% fall in vandalism as measured by the BCS and a 13% fall in criminal damage and 9% drop in car crime on the police figures. The murder rate in England and Wales rose from 618 to 642 homicides in 2010/11, which included the 12 victims of the Cumbria shootings in June 2010. Sexual offences as recorded by the police rose by 1%. Overall, the BCS estimated there were 9.6m crimes in 2010/11 compared with 9.5m the year before. Police recorded 4.2m offences, a 4% fall compared with 4.3m the previous year and its lowest level since 2002. The police detection rate – meaning that a suspect has been identified and interviewed and there is sufficient evidence to bring a charge – remained at 28%. Crime Alan Travis guardian.co.uk

Posted by on July 14, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.