Knife Crime Hits Record High While Murders Surge in London

Crimes committed with knives in Britain jumped 6 per cent over the previous year, with some 46,265 knife crimes being recorded in the year to March 2020 — when the government locked down the nation in response to the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.

The figures are in fact likely higher in reality, however, as Greater Manchester Police did not contribute their statistics to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) report.

The surge in bloodshed was driven in large part by crime in London, which saw a 7 per cent increase in knife-related crimes, with the number of murders in the British capital increasing by 23 per cent in the year to April. Homicides committed with a knife or blade have also risen by 28 per cent since 2018, with 86 people being stabbed to death in London last year.

The ONS report also revealed that last year there were 619 offences committed with corrosive substances — such as acid. This was the first year that the data collection agency recorded figures for such crimes.

The proportion of crimes actually being solved in England and Wales also fell to a record low, with just 7 per cent of criminal acts resulting in a court appearance for a suspect, down from 8 per cent last year and 16 per cent in 2014-15 when such records began to be compiled.

The Home Office report said that the fall represented some 33,460 fewer offences resulting in a criminal charge or court summons compared to the year prior. The number of sexual offences that resulted in charges fell from 5.2 per cent two years ago to just 3.2 per cent last year.

The number of rapes that ended in prosecution was just 1.4 per cent.