Sky News reporting that the chairman of the UK Statistics Authority has officially rebuked Cameron's Conservatives over their scaremongering tactics over violent crime (as I posted HERE.In a letter sent to David Cameron, the UK Stats Authority says the Tory attempt to show violent crime had risen is misleading and a misuse of statistics.The UK Stats Authority questions why the Tories did not use the well respected British Crime Survey figures.The answer of course is obvious...Because the independent BCS shows that violent crime has in fact HALVED in recent years.The Tory fox is now well and truly shot.So no more 'Broken Britain' bollox Mr Cameron.UPDATE: How The Times is reporting the story.UPDATE 2: The BBC's Mark Easton gives his take on the rebuke for the Tories and says the Stats...

This morning’s Today programme provided another of those ‘mustn’t miss’ moments, as presenter Evan Davis  took the Conservatives’ Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling to task over the party’s misleading use of crime statistics. Last week Mark Easton, the BBC’s Home Affairs editor, had asked ‘Are the Tories being honest with their claims on violent crime’: Last week, David Cameron told me that one reason he could justify the phrase “broken society” was because of “significant” increases in violent crime, notably gun and knife crime in Britain.  When I challenged him to produce the evidence, his party press office sent the BBC a list of statistics. It emerges that the only way the Conservative leader can back up his claims is to ignore the klaxon...

Delighted to hear the Conservative con on violent crime figures exposed on BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning.As I posted last week HERE, David Cameron's 'Broken Britain' campaign relies heavily on them being able to prove violent crime is rising...when he knows that in fact the reverse is the truth. This morning, the BBC put Mark Easton - their journalist who first publicised the Tory con - head to head with Cameron's spokesman on crime, Chris Grayling.Grayling had sent out spurious statistics to local Conservative parties across the country encouraging them to claim violent crime had risen since 1997.Mark Easton explained that the Tories had ignored official clear warnings that the figures they were sending out could not be compared due to major improvements in recording violent...

One industry that may become more profitable during the recession is the home security.Unemployment is rising, meaning that crime will rise as people have less to do and less money to spend.Nick Cohen provides evidence of this in his book Pretty Straight Guys, pointing out that the British Crime Survey shows that crime rose by 11% a year between 1991 and 1993 at a time of high unemployment, whereas it fell by 6% per year between 1995 and 2000, when unemployment fell to pre-1979 levels.Police officers are leaving the force to work abroad due to low morale and low pay, and the form-filling culture means that many are at the station filling in reports.Police blogs reveal the shocking state of 21st century policing.I predict that over the next twelve months, sales of burglar alarms, "Beware...

The Celtic Sage is not the only one dismayed at the forces of Law and Order having lost their direction and is seemingly not the only one railing against closed police stations, call centre prioritisation and policing driven by political correctness and central targets. The middle classes have lost confidence in the police, a stark report has warned. They fear they have been alienated by a service which routinely targets ordinary people rather than serious criminals, simply to fill Government crime quotas. The attitude of some officers has also led to spiralling complaints about neglect of duty and rudeness. The report from the Civitas think-tank says incidents which would once have been ignored are now treated as crimes - including a case of children chalking a pavement. Its author,...

Right Diamond Geezer?Right Bad Egg?Regular blogistas will know I’m not the current Home Secretary’s biggest fan but even I was driven to sympathise with her on the churlish behaviour she received from the Coppers Protection League otherwise known as the Police Federation. Here was the snide introduction by the outgoing Secretary of the Federation, Jan Berry, who represents those blameless souls, the Constables of the United Kingdom who stay awake at night thinking of nothing else other than our well being and safety: “At my first conference, I introduced the opportunity to ask questions of the Home Secretary. Although some Home Secretaries have subsequently regretted it – the session has been an important and healthy exchange of views. Home Secretary - I admire your courage. You...