Don’t go soft on crime

VIOLENCE up 20 per cent, including gun crime and robbery... Burglary up by 32 per cent... Vehicle crime up 18 per cent... Sex offences up by almost a quarter.

Yes, the overall number of offences is still significantly down on its peak in the mid1990s, but this recent spike in England and Wales should set alarm bells ringing.

Of course, ask any of the modern breed of politically correct senior officers and they will shroud- wave about cuts, while squandering fortunes on gimmicks and investigations into long-dead celebrities.

The Mail has an alternative explanation: Criminals know that so few offences are investigated their chances of being caught are vanishingly small. Even if a culprit is identified, they have every chance of getting off with a slap on the wrist.

And if our report today of a ‘cannabis club’ operating in Teesside is anything to go by, the police have all but given up on enforcing drugs laws. Run by a convicted drug dealer and registered as a private company, its members do not hide their use of the illegal substance and boast of being ‘very open’ with officers.

When drugs are at the root of all manner of other – more serious – offences, it’s no wonder crime is spiralling out of control.