The two main government sponsored sources of annual crime statistics for England and Wales are;-
"*RECORDED CRIME STATISTICS*" (crimes recorded by the Police) "*BRITISH CRIME SURVEY*" (crimes as experienced by a representative group of people surveyed) Because of the way that they are compiled, these two sets of statistics often conflict, with each showing different trends. Whilst they offer the best guide available to the public, neither set of statistics is perfect. For example, the latest reports are in direct conflict over the key issue of violent crime, the British Crime Survey indicates violent crime to be down 11% on the previous year, whereas the Recorded Crime Statistics reflect a 7% increase! RECORDED CRIME STATISTICS - it is generally accepted that in any year, a high percentage of crimes are simply not reported to the police for a variety of reasons. Government guidelines also mean that not all incidents reported to the police, need to be recorded for statistical purposes. BRITISH CRIME SURVEY - These statistics are based on the experiences of what is hoped to be a typically representative group of the population - however the current number of people surveyed is 40,000 per year, which is obviously a small number considered against a total population of around 60 million. A further complication is that the basis of both sets of statistics have changed over recent years, i.e. until 2002, the survey group size for the British Crime Survey, was just a miniscule 20,000 people, but this has now been increased to 40,000. Police guidelines have also changed, meaning that some crimes not previously recorded, now are, whilst others have been reclassified and are now recorded separately, etc. Such changes, make it almost impossible to realistically track longer term trends from the previously published information. It must also be recognised that inevitably, by the time that the official statistics have been compiled, checked and published they are already some 18 months or so out of date. *Note*; other sources of information drawn on to prepare this page, include youth surveys, Mori polls, media such as BBC News and the national press, etc. Such surveys are typically based on relatively small numbers of respondents (i.e. youth survey; 5,000 teenagers between ages 11 & 16 polled), whilst press and media frequently focus on a single or limited group of incidents at any time. For further information, simply going to a search engine such as 'google' and using search phrases such as 'knife culture in Britain', 'Knife crime' or similar search terms will generate hundreds of thousands of pages to sift through so you can easily keep yourself up to date. *Statistics - some specifics / the numbers *(based on the latest annual statistics for crime in England & Wales) source of information; note: where BCS & RCS figures vary we have tried to show comparison Incidents of Violent Crime 2,715,000 British Crime Survey (RCS figures 1,000,000+) - Violent Crime - involving use of weapons almost 75% Recorded Crime Statistics - Violent Crime - Wounding 38% Recorded Crime Statistics (BCS indicate 25%) - Violent Crime - Serious Wounding 2% Recorded Crime Statistics (BCS - no info) - Violent Crime - fatalities 0.1% Recorded Crime Statistics (BCS - no info) Homicides (incl. murder / manslaughter / infanticides) 1,045 Recorded Crime Statistics - Homicides with sharp implement 27% Recorded Crime Statistics - Homicides with guns 8% Recorded Crime Statistics - Homicides increase since 1965 more than tripled Recorded Crime Statistics Incidents involving edged weapon attacks (London Only) 54,000+ British National Martial Arts Association Firearm incidents involving violence 7,133 Recorded Crime StatisticsOn Mon, Feb 2, 2009 at 12:31 PM, Chris Jenkins < [email protected]> wrote: > As we've discussed before, however, removing this legal channel in the UK > has simply prompted two things: The rise in non-gun related murder via > hatchet and knife attack (the racially motivated attack against the black > man with a white girlfriend at the bus stop was particularly brutal), and of > course, a bustling black market in guns for those with criminal connections. > Home Office is suggesting arresting people now for appearing on Facebook > brandishing a blade in a threatening manner now, I hear...where does it end? > At what point in time do you feel safe? > > > On Mon, Feb 2, 2009 at 12:24 PM, Ian Pollard <[email protected]>wrote: > >> >> Chris, >> >> I don't think it's about misperception. A car, a pool, a knife... each of >> these serve essential, non-violent, functions. A gun is designed to kill; it >> has no other purpose. If people want to shoot targets, use a gun that shoots >> an infrared beam at an electronic target, or play a video game. In terms of >> the theory, eliminating guns as a risk makes a lot of sense. >> >> Eliminating cars has inherent functional problems for our society. >> >> Ian >> >> >> >> 2009/2/2 Chris Jenkins <[email protected]> >> >>> In 'Freakonomics', Steven Levitt explored the remarkable phenomenon of >>> parental misperception of risk. He noted that a child was 11 times more >>> likely to die by swimming accident at a friend's house with a pool, than by >>> shooting accident at a friend's house with a gun, and yet parents as a >>> generality never restricted play due to the presence of a pool, but would >>> restrict play due to the presence of a gun. >>> >>> Statistically, I am far more likely to kill you with my: >>> >>> car >>> knife >>> baseball bat or other blunt trauma intrument >>> alcohol >>> >>> than with my gun, yet your perception of personal risk is so skewed that >>> you literally feel your freedom is impinged upon merely by my possession of >>> this tool. That's a psychological phenomenon that is really irrelevant to >>> the greater conversation, and which probably deserves a thread unto its >>> own. >>> >>> On Mon, Feb 2, 2009 at 11:39 AM, Ian Pollard <[email protected]>wrote: >>> >>>> >>>> Your posession of a firearm makes me less safe. Not being murdered or >>>> hurt is a pretty fundamental freedom; can we agree on that much? Now, am I >>>> more likely to be a victim of gun crime in a country with lots of guns or a >>>> country with very few? >>>> >>>> (First person to mention Switzerland gets bitch-slapped.) >>>> >>>> >>>> Ian >>>> >>>> >>>> >>> >>> >>> >> >> >> >> > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Minds-Eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
