Dickson welcomes drop in recorded crime levels

Alliance Justice spokesperson Stewart Dickson MLA has welcomed the drop in recorded crime. The statistics that have been released by the PSNI show that there were 100,389 recorded crimes in 2012/13, compared to 103,389 in the previous year, a drop of 2.9%. This is the fourth consecutive year that has seen a decrease in recorded crime and is the lowest since the new method for calculating recorded crime was introduced in 1998/99.

Stewart Dickson MLA said: “While there is still a perception that crime levels are rising, in fact these statistics show the opposite is true.

“The praise for this continued drop in recorded crime should go to all our hard working police officers, from the Chief Constable and his senior staff to Constables on the street.

“The Chief Constable has prioritised community policing, the results of which are seen in these statistics. The Justice Minister has also sought to pass radical reforms at all levels of the justice system including reducing re-offending rates and the introduction of Policing and Community Safety Partnerships.

“While much work still remains, these statistics show that we are on the right path.”

ENDS