Blair: Promising more police officers

As new figures point to a fall in crime levels, the prime minister has committed Labour to delivering a further 15 per cent reduction.

Tony Blair and Charles Clarke on Thursday outlined a range of tough new powers aimed at cracking down on yobs and criminals.

The home secretary said that the "fight against crime and particularly violent crime and anti-social behaviour is a number one priority for Labour".

Their commitments came as figures from the British Crime Survey (BCS) showed an 11 per cent fall in crime during 2004.

And separate data on crimes recorded by police forces found a five per cent reduction in overall crime in the final three months of last year.

However, violent crime recorded by police rose nine per cent, and sexual offences rose 18 per cent, although this was thought to be at least partly due to attempts to encourage more victims to come forward.

Robbery fell by six per cent, domestic burglary by 17 per cent, and vehicle thefts were down by 16 per cent.

The BCS, which is based on interviews with members of the public rather than crimes reported to police, found a 10 per cent fall in violent crime.

Fightback

Ahead of the publication of the latest figures, Clarke announced a 10-point plan to "fight back against thugs".

It included a proposed new Violent Crime Reduction Bill, to be introduced within weeks of a Labour victory, which would tackle the use of replica firearms and knives.

Hooligans responsible for anti-social behaviour would be publicly named and shamed so local people know who was responsible for any trouble.

Blair promised action to ensure a "visible uniformed presence" in every community.

The Labour leader told a press conference that police numbers are at record levels, with plans to add another 20,000 community support officers to the 4,000 already on the streets.

"On any basis, crime has fallen since we came to office. Yet we know that for many people in local communities it doesn't feel like that," said the prime minister.

Blair said he recognised that addressing fear of crime was important.

He pledged to invest in young people, give the police more powers and increase the number of police and community support officers on the streets.

The prime minister said he would update anti-social behaviour orders and introduce new legislation on drugs, binge-drinking and serious organised crime.

"We will make sure that in local communities we are actually providing things for young people, so we are investing in youth services, in Sure Start, the New Deal and inner city regeneration."

'Complacency'

The Conservatives said the government's reaction to the crime figures showed "breathtaking complacency".

Shadow home secretary David Davis said that under Labour "there are a million violent crimes a year, gun crime has doubled and police clear up rates are at their lowest rates for at least 25 years".

"Yet after eight years and just weeks before an election their response is to re-announce yet another headline grabbing target which - if actually achieved - would only just get crime levels back down to what they inherited," he said.

"People want action; only the Conservatives would fund an extra 5,000 police a year - on our streets and free from red tape and bureaucracy - to deal with Labour's failure on crime.

"We will also build 20,000 extra prison places and make sure that criminals serve the sentence they deserve."