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News

News Archives: Index

October 7, 2010: Probation Set For Industrial Action

October 5, 2010: Turning Prisoners Into Taxpayers

October 4, 2010: Murder Changes Now In Force

September 20, 2010: Probation Programmes Face Cuts

August 24, 2010: Victorian Poor Law Records Online

August 10, 2010: Justice Job Cuts

July 28, 2010: Prison Violence Growing

July 22, 2010: Police Numbers: Latest Figures

July 22, 2010: New Jurisdiction Rules

July 16, 2010: CCJS On Prison And Probation Spending Under Labour

July 15, 2010: Latest Statistics On Violent And Sexual Crime

July 15, 2010: Latest National Crime Figures

July 15, 2010: New Chief Prisons Inspector

July 14, 2010: Hard Times Ahead For Prisons: Anne Owers

July 14, 2010: Prison Does Not Work: Ken Clarke

July 13, 2010: Criminal Justice Reform: Sentencing and Rehabilitation

July 13, 2010: Criminal Justice Reform Priorities

July 12, 2010: What Price Public Protection, Asks Probation Chief Inspector

July 12, 2010: NOMS has failed, says Napo

July 10, 2010: IPCC To Investigate Death of Raoul Moat

July 9, 2010: Women In Prison: New Report

July 9, 2009: Unjust Deserts: Imprisonment for Public Protection

July 8, 2010: Police Search Powers Change

July 7, 2010: Make 'Legal High' Illegal, Says ACMD

July 2, 2010: Failing Children In Prison

July 2, 2010: Police Buried Under a Blizzard of Guidance: HMIC

July 1, 2010: Freedom To Change The Law?

June 30, 2010: A New Outlook On Penal Reform?

June 30, 2010: Revolving Door Of Offending Must Stop, Says Clarke

June 30, 2010: Ken Clarke: Speech on Criminal Justice Reform

June 29, 2010: No More Police Targets

June 26, 2010: Family Intervention Projects Questioned

June 25, 2010: Cutting Criminal Justice

June 24, 2010: Napo on Sex Offenders Report

June 23, 2010: Closing Courts: The Cuts Begin

June 23, 2010: Strategy To Tackle Gangs

June 15, 2010: Courts and Mentally Disordered Offenders

June 8, 2010: Working With Muslims in Prison

June 1, 2010: Your Chance To Nominate a QC

June 30, 2005: Economic and Social Costs of Crime: New Report

A new study updates the original estimates of the costs of crime against individuals and households originally published by Brand and Price (2000) in Home Office Research Study 217. The new study estimates the total current cost of crime against individuals and households in 2003/04 was around £36.2bn.

The new report, titled “The Economic And Social Costs Of Crime Against Individuals And Households 2003/04” has been published as Home Office Online Report 30/05, and is available to download from the Home Office Research Development and Statistics website. The study includes the following key points:

  • The total current burden cost of crime against individuals and households in 2003/04 was around £36.2bn. This represents a 9% decrease from the estimated total cost in 2000 after accounting for inflation and methodological improvements. The fall in total crime has been partially offset by the change in the mix of crimes and increases in some unit cost estimates.
  • The revised estimates of the unit costs of crime against individuals and households exhibit a broadly a similar pattern to the costs estimated in 2000.
  • The most costly crimes are those with a large estimated emotional and physical impact; homicide, wounding, robbery and sexual offences are estimated to be the most costly crimes.
  • Serious wounding is seen to be less costly than previously estimated, while other wounding is more costly. The most costly violent crime is now estimated to be rape, which has increased significantly since 2000.
  • Violent crime and emotional and physical impacts of crime account for a large fraction of the total cost of crime against individuals and households.
  • Considerable uncertainty remains around any estimate of the total number of sexual offences, and the relationship between sexual offences and recorded sexual offences remains uncertain.
  • The prevention of one average homicide, wounding or sexual offence is estimated to be of significantly greater value to society than the prevention of one average burglary, theft or incident of vandalism.