Britain’s murder rate is highest in over a DECADE with two people killed every day on UK’s bloody streets
BRITAIN'S murder rate is at its highest level in a DECADE with two people being killed every day, shocking figures have revealed.
And knife crime has soared to the highest levels in eight years too as Britain's blade epidemic continues to spiral out of control.
Cops recorded 732 homicides in 2018 - the highest since 2008 - 607 of which were murders.
More than 100 of them took place in London, and the crisis has spilled over into 2019 too.
The number hasn't been this high since murders totalled 661 in the year up to March 2008.
And despite desperate attempts to try and curb knife attacks on the streets, police recorded 40,443 offences involving a knife last year as well (excluding Greater Manchester Police, so the number is even higher).
An extra 2,000 incidents took place, a rise of 6 per cent, to the highest numbers since the same records began in 2011.
It's the fourth year in a row there's been an increase in knife crimes.
Overall, the number of crimes involving blades has gone up by a third since March 2011 as gang wars and kids get wrapped up in violence.
The news will be grim reading for Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and Home Secretary, Sajid Javid.
Mr Javid ploughed more money into policing ahead of the bank holiday weekend, but the Mayor has moaned it's still not enough.
Both have come under fire for failing to get a grip on the epidemic sweeping the capital and across the country.
Alex Mayes, spokesperson for independent charity Victim Support, said today: "It’s deeply concerning to see homicides continue to rise and we know from working with those bereaved by murder and manslaughter through our national Homicide Service just how devastating the impact is on family and friends, witnesses to the crime and the wider community."
The Office for National Statistics figures painted a grim picture across the board:
- Robbery up 11 per cent
- Homicides up six per cent
- Violent attacks were up by almost a fifth
31 out of 42 police forces in England and Wales recorded an increase in knife offences in the last year.
Labour's Diane Abbott said the figures were "deeply troubling" and called for the end to police cuts.
"Members of the public and police officers are both increasingly concerned about the growth of serious crime including knife crime," she said.
"But Ministers are in denial, refusing to accept that their cuts to police forces have had any impact either on crime levels or the ability to apprehend the criminals."
Although more criminal acts have been recorded, there's been no "significant" changes in overall crime levels over the past 12 months, experts claimed.
Police and fire minister Nick Hurd said today that the "chance of being a victim of crime remains low" and insisted more recent figures for London showed it was being curbed.
He said: "Yet too many people are still falling victim to serious violence, which is why we will continue our urgent and unprecedented action to reverse this terrible trend.
"We have given police forces additional powers and have this year put more than £1billion extra into policing, including council tax and £100million specifically for those areas worst affected by violent crime.
"But law enforcement alone is not the answer which is why our Serious Violence Strategy puts a greater focus on prevention, including by consulting on a proposed new duty to underpin a public health approach to serious violence and investing over £220million in projects to steer young people away from crime."
Violent crime statistics
- Drug offences up 7 per cent
- Possession of weapons offences up 21 per cent
- Violence with injury up 7 per cent
- Rape up 11 per cent
- Violence against the person offences up 19 per cent
- Recoded offences involving firearms down 2 per cent
(Home Office, Police Recorded Crime, 2018 compared to 2017)
MOST READ IN POLITICS
This year Britain's crime crisis shows no sign of stopping either.
17-year-old Jodie Chesney was found knifed to death in a playground in Romford.
And hero dad-of-three, Gavin Garraway, 40, was fatally knifed in broad daylight in Clapham, South London, on March 29.
Just last night a double stabbing in Leytonstone left two men fighting for their lives in an attack near the tube station.
'Thieves' key cars
VEHICLE thefts soared by nine per cent last year — with more crooks targeting keyless entry cars.
A total 113,037 offences were recorded in England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics said.
AA president Edmund King warned of “thieves bouncing radio signals to unlock keyless cars”.
Criminal damage to vehicles was up by 14 per cent to 811,000.
THE SUN SAYS: CRIMINAL FAILURE
THE Tories’ failure on crime is shameful.
They slashed police numbers to balance the books. It seemed safe as crime kept falling. Now we know that, among other problems, cuts went too far.
Murders, knife crimes, robberies and sex offences are soaring. Yes, the homicide rate was higher under Labour. But the Tories, the party of law and order, have no decent excuses left.
Each depressing crime stat is a life ruined or ended. The Tories have been in power nine years. It’s down to them.
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