Sex and violence up despite overall drop in offending

SEXUAL and violent crime has risen in the past year, new figures show.

Violent crime increased by 5.3 per cent, including serious assaults, which soared by 24 per cent.

The number of crimes of violence rose from 6,434 in 2014-15 to 6,775 in 2015-16, while sexual crimes were up from 9,671 to 10,273 – the highest number since 2010-2011.

The detection rate for violent crime dropped from 3.2 per cent to 2.3 per cent, while for sexual offending it fell from 75 per cent to 74.1 per cent.

Yet recorded crime in Scotland overall has fallen by 3.2 per cent in the past year, according to provisional Police Scotland data.

Deputy Chief Constable Iain Livingstone said: ‘The overall reduction in recorded crime is to be welcomed it means fewer victims of crime in our communities.’

Scottish Tory justice spokesman Douglas Ross said: ‘Any drop in overall crime has to be welcomed, but the SNP shouldn’t get too excited about patting itself on the back.’

Police Scotland said the ‘main drivers for the increase in overall violent crime are serious assault and common assault’. A report to the Scottish Police Authority said: ‘While both of these crimes are within their expected ranges, force-wide a number of divisions are above.’

Serious assaults rose to 3,716, up by 723 on the previous year.

The force recorded a total of 246,243 crimes in Scotland between April 1, 2015 and March 31 this year, down from 254,27 .

Of these, 127,126 crimes were resolved or ‘detected’, a 1 per cent increase on last year’s 50.6 per cent.

There were 49 murders, six fewer than the previous year. Only one remains undetected.

Scottish Labour justice spokesman Claire Baker said: ‘Whilst an overall reduction in crime is to be welcomed, it’s concerning to see the first rise in violent crime in five years and a further increase in sexual crimes.’

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘We welcome the indication that total crime recorded by the police continues to fall.’