Knife crime, shoplifting and fraud is on the rise in Britain. Fraud was up by a third in the last year, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which also reveal a 50 per cent increase (to around 483,000 incidents) in theft. Shoplifting offences rose by 20 per cent in 2024 – reaching the highest figure in over 20 years.
What’s shocking about this tidal wave of crime is that it is hardly surprising. Anyone who has lived in England over the last decade or so cannot fail to have noticed that our streets feel more dangerous. Where I live in Essex, there have been more stabbings. Many people I know in London and the Home Counties have been mugged for their phones and wallets.
Take a walk through central London and it won’t be long before you encounter someone zipping about on an illegal electric bike with a balaclava on.
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