§ Mr. Matthew TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to combat crime in the south west in the coming year. [36735]
§ Mr. MacleanThere are four policy objectives which underpin our efforts to combat crime. They are:
- to do all we can to prevent crime;
- to do all we can to help the police catch criminals;
60 - to ensure that when suspects are caught they are tried fairly and speedily; and
- to make sure that when courts convict criminals they have the powers they need to deal with them appropriately and effectively.
These objectives apply as much to the south west as to any other part of the country. The latest Home Office crime figures, revealed by my right hon. and learned Friend on 27 September, show a record-breaking fall in recorded crime. They demonstrate the largest ever fall in recorded crime over a two year period; the longest uninterrupted fall in recorded crime since quarterly figures were first recorded and published; the first fall in recorded violent crime for almost 50 years; and falls in burglary of 5 per cent. vehicle crime of 9 per cent., and sexual offences of 9 per cent. In the south west of England recorded crime has fallen by nearly 6 per cent. In the Devon and Cornwall police area, it has fallen by over 8.5 per cent.