Police-recorded crime in England and Wales hits new high

Police-recorded crime in England and Wales has hit a new high, driven by sharp increases in violent and sexual offences, new figures show.A total of 6.5 million crimes were recorded in the 12 months to June 2022, up from the previous all-time high of 6.3 million in the year to March.The figure is also up 12% compared with the year to June 2021, when crime levels were affected by Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.The total includes 196,889 sexual offences, up 20% year-on-year from 164,043 and 21% higher than pre-pandemic levels.The number of recorded sexual offences fell during periods of lockdown but there have been ‘substantial increases’ since April 2021, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) which published the figures.This may reflect a number of factors, including ‘the impact of high-profile incidents, media coverage and campaigns on people’s willingness to report incidents to the police, as well as a potential increase in the number of victims,’ the ONS said.Some 2.1 million violent crimes against the person were recorded by police in the 12 months to June, up 13% year-on-year and up 20% on pre-pandemic levels.Comparable data for police-recorded crime begins in 2002.