Crime rate drops to lowest level since 1981

Thursday 04 February 2016

Yet another drop in the annual crime rate has seen it fall to its lowest level since 1981 – a third lower than it was just six years ago.

Figures released by the police this morning show that three quarters of the incidents that they deal with don’t involve criminal activity – with stop checks on cars, concerns for welfare, child protection notifications and financial suspicious activity reports taking up a huge amount of resources.

Of the 13,635 incidents that the police dealt with in 2015 (37 per day) just 3,080 (eight per day) involved a criminal offence.

The change has come against a backdrop of a fall in the number of police officers, which has been reduced by 10% since 2011.

Police Chief Mike Bowron says that although crime is low, the demands on the force are still high, and he has warned “there is a limit to how far we can go without compromising public safety”.

He said: “The face of policing is changing, not just in Jersey but across the UK as well.

“21st Century policing now requires a broader range of skills from my officers and whilst recorded crime is down, we have never been busier.

“In addition to their day jobs, most officers also carry additional specialist skills within the Force, so we are able to deal with the majority of incidents on Island.

“Increasingly, we are also seeing officers being first aiders as well as providing greater support for people with mental health illnesses, as the public now look to the Police for support in these broader community based issues.

“We are incredibly proud of the continued drop in crime which has resulted from our intelligence-led, proactive and community based approach to policing the island.”