Rise in violent crime prompts political row

New figures showing a 12 per cent rise in recorded violent crime have prompted a political row.

Home secretary David Blunkett said the British Crime Survey, published on Thursday, showed that the actual number of offences has fallen in the past year, but that more attacks have been registered by police.

However his Conservative shadow David Davis claimed this was "Home Office spin" which the public would not believe.

The BCS statistics showed that overall crime in England and Wales fell by five per cent in 2003/04, while police recorded crime has increased by one per cent.

Recorded incidents of violent offences did leap above the one million mark, but the Home Office put the rise down "in part to the continuing effects of recording changes and a greater willingness of victims to come forward, as well as record number of police officers to record offences".

The BCS estimated that the actual level of violent attacks went down by three per cent in the past 12 months, as did domestic burglaries.

Dispute

Blunkett said the figures were the result of decisions Labour had taken since coming to power in 1997.

"These are promising results which reinforce the major progress made in fighting crime since 1997," he said.

"Crime overall is falling, as measured by the BCS, after a peak in 1995, and I am pleased that property crime, which makes up the vast majority of offences, is continuing to fall dramatically. Crime has fallen by 30 per cent since 1997.

"The numbers of violent crimes recorded by the police has again shown an increase due to changes, recommended by the Association of Chief Police Officers, in the way the police record crimes.

"We should welcome the fact that crime which was not being recorded by the police three years ago is now registered.  Coupled with record police numbers - nearly 140,000 - backed up by 3,802 community support officers, this means that the police can target hotspots to cut opportunistic crime and anti-social behaviour, and provide vital reassurance to communities.

"The past year has shown unarguably we have been very successful in continuing to cut vehicle crime and burglary - crimes which traditionally affect the public the most.  But we now need to focus more intently on low-level thuggery, anti-social behaviour and the sorts of alcohol-fuelled incidents that are recorded by the police as 'violent crime'."

But Davis said the public would not accept excuses from ministers.

"All we get from this Labour government is tough talk and no action," said the Tory spokesman.

"No amount of Home Office spin can hide the fact that violent crime has risen by a staggering 12 per cent in the last year, breaking the one million barrier, and that overall crime is up yet again under Labour.

"Seven years of being tough on crime under this government has led to the figures increasing year after year. It's about time the home secretary stopped swamping us with initiatives and summits and got on with delivering the tough action he keeps promising.

"These statistics released today don't tell the full story. They don't include retail crime, which has doubled, or illegal drug use, up 16 per cent, or crimes against young people, which is also up.

"It also seems astonishing that only days ago David Blunkett promised a 15 per cent drop in crime by 2007, only for the figures to apparently deliver a third of his target in the same week. The public at large will simply not believe this supposed fall in crime and justifiably so."