Million violent crimes a year, but fewer than half are solved
The detection rate for offences of violence stood at 49 per cent last year, according to official figures issued in a parliamentary answer.
When Labour came to power, almost three quarters of violent crimes were solved.
The figures, which mean that every year hundreds of thousands of victims do not see justice done, caused a fresh dispute last night over policing priorities.
Rank-and-file police leaders and opposition politicians said too much time was taken with red tape or chasing lesser crimes to attain government targets.
Dominic Grieve, the shadow home secretary, said: “It is bad enough that so much violent crime is being committed. It is a real insult to victims that over half of perpetrators are getting away with it.
“This is a direct result of Labour’s target culture, which has incentivised the police to pursue minor crimes over serious violent ones, and the reams of red tape that tie officers to their desks when the public wants them out on the street.”
It emerged last month that levels of some of the most serious forms of violent crime were higher than previously claimed because of the way police now recorded offences. In a leaked document at the weekend, the Home Office’s leading civil servant admitted that the Government had failed to reduce serious violence because of a focus on targets.
The latest figures for England and Wales will renew the pressure on police chiefs to send officers to visit the victim of every crime after Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, backed such an approach in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday.
Lyn Costello, of Mothers Against Murder and Aggression, said: “It is frightening. Police are tied up in so much paperwork. We have to put more officers on the streets.”
The detection rate, where a perpetrator is identified and dealt with, for all violent offences was 49 per cent in 2007-08. That means that of 961,188 recorded offences, 490,000 went unsolved.
Such offences range from murder and death by dangerous driving to wounding and assaults. The category does not include sex attacks or robbery.
The detection rate even includes “non-sanction detections” recorded by some police forces. This is where an offence is “cleared up” but no further action is taken, such as where the offender died before being convicted or the victim refused to give evidence.
Officers complain that they are tied up with bureaucracy while senior officers have been accused of pressing staff to chase easy-to-solve minor crimes to achieve targets. Figures last month showed that on average officers spent only eight minutes in every hour on patrol.
Simon Reed, of the Police Federation, said: “The public are right to be concerned. We must get our priorities right.” Targets signalled to officers that “common assault is the same as serious assault”.
Ministers admitted in April that police had been focusing “disproportionately” on minor offenders at the expense of catching serious criminals. Ms Smith said yesterday: “I am determined to see a police force that delivers for the public.”
The Home Office said recording methods introduced in 2002 affected detection rates. A spokesman said: “Overall crime is down by six per cent and fewer people are being injured as a result of violence.
“We are always looking for new ways to further reduce bureaucracy, freeing officers for front-line duties and building an even more efficient police service.”
The overall detection rate would be higher if all forces included non-sanction detections.
You might also be interested reading:
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
Leave your response!