Murder rate in England and Wales spike as long-term fall in crime comes to close

Murder rates in England in Wales have increased by 12% over the last year amid a significant increase in knife crime, new data released today shows.

Offences involving knives or sharp instruments were up by 16% in the year ending March 2018, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The ONS said that today’s figures marked an end to the long-term fall in crime.

Excluding cases linked to terror attacks and the Hillsborough disaster, the number of recorded homicides increased from 627 to 701.

Police registered 40,147 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in the year to March, the highest number since 2010/11.

‘Over recent decades, we’ve seen a fall in overall levels of crime, a trend that now looks to be stabilising,’ said a spokesman.

Rates of theft are also on the increase, with vehicle-related thefts up by 17% and the number of robberies recorded by police up by 30%, although the ONS noted that recording improvements are likely to account for some of this spike.

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In the 12 months to March , forces in England and Wales logged a total of 5.5 million offences in total, a rise of a tenth (11%) compared with the previous year.

Caroline Youell, Crime Statistics and Analysis, Office for National Statistics, said: ‘Most people don’t experience crime. Today’s figures show a fairly stable picture in England and Wales for most crime types. It is too early to say if this is a change to the long-term declining trend.

‘There have been increases in some lower-volume “high-harm” offences such as homicide and knife crime, consistent with rises over the past three years. However, the latest rise in gun crime is much smaller than previously seen.

‘We have also seen continued increases in some theft offences such as vehicle-related theft and burglary, while computer viruses have fallen.’