13 views
Good Society > Published by Shamik Das, January 22nd 2010 at 3:46 pm

Cameron sending out mixed messages over Sure Start, crime and family

Print Friendly

On the day the Edlington Two were sent down, David Cameron has been accused of “easy populism” and “playing politics“ after giving a major speech on what he called the “social recession” and “moral failure” at the heart of “broken Britain”.

In the speech, the Conservative leader defended his controversial marriage proposals, which had been dismissed as “social engineering” by Shadow Business Secretary Ken Clarke last year, imploring the public to “think of the signals” government was sending out.

He also said that he would support “every sort of family” and would “back Sure Start” – a completely mixed signal itself given his marriage tax plans and Shadow Universities Minister David Willetts’s remarks yesterday that “only a few” of the 3,197 Sure Start centres wouldn’t be abolished under a Tory government.

And, answering questions after his address, he brushed over the 8 per cent fall in crime, claiming “we have a problem with violent crime” and “we have had violent crime rising” – this in spite of the British Crime Survey’s 2008/09 figures, released yesterday, which showed a 4% fall in violent offences, burglaries down 8%, robberies down 9% and car crime down a fifth.

Gun-crime-statsFurther analysis of the “Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Homicides, Firearm Offences and Intimate Violence 2008/09″ report reveals that:

• Homicides (651) are down 14% from 2007/8 (753) – the lowest level for ten years, since 1998/9 (642);

• “Sharp instrument” homicides are down 6% from 271 to 255;

• Shooting homicides are down an even sharper 26% from 53 to 39;

• All firearms offences are down 18% from 17,378 to 14,250 – the fifth consecutive fall;

• Firearms offences resulting in injury were down from 4,164 (24% injury rate) to 2,458 (17%); and

• Prevalance of domestic abuse is down for men (5%-4%) and women (7%-6%) since 2004/5.

Longer term, violent crime – classed as robbery, sexual offences, assault and murder – is down nearly half (48%) since its peak in 1995.

Sources: Office For National Statistics, British Crime Survey, Home Office

  • http://twitter.com/wdjstraw/status/8074518392 Will Straw

    Great analysis by @shamikdas RT @leftfootfwd: Cameron sending out mixed messages over Sure Start, crime and family: http://is.gd/6OiMw

  • http://twitter.com/jamie_chandler/status/8075143599 Jamie P. Chandler

    RT @wdjstraw: Great analysis by @shamikdas RT @leftfootfwd: Cameron sending out mixed messages over Sure Start, crime and family: http://is.gd/6OiMw

  • http://twitter.com/gsdog7/status/8075499946 gsdog7

    RT @leftfootfwd: Cameron sending out mixed messages over Sure Start, crime and family: http://is.gd/6OiMw

  • Anon E Mouse

    Shamik – You are absolutely right in my opinion to highlight this. I remember when Blair did it I was equally disgusted by the cheap populism.

    http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2010/01/cameron-blair-today-murder

    I do think yourself or LFF should try to get hold of the full report the BBC has “obtained” to see what really went on instead of the whitewash this useless council is putting out on the radio this afternoon.

    Seven children have died since the criticism of the failings were highlighted and I think people are entitled to know if “Lessons are being learned” or it’s just more waffle.

    Good article dude.

  • http://twitter.com/jessica_asato/status/8076654807 Jessica Asato

    Excellent stuff by @leftfootfwd on crime stats http://bit.ly/511anI

  • http://twitter.com/jamescowley/status/8076695954 James Cowley

    RT @Jessica_Asato: Excellent stuff by @leftfootfwd on crime stats http://bit.ly/511anI

  • http://timmymc.blogspot.com Tim McLoughlin

    I agree wholeheartedly. We need to show that Britain isn’t broken and that we’ve done most to ensure it isn’t. I wrote about this myself earlier today: http://timmymc.blogspot.com/2010/01/social-recession.html

    Cameron claims to be on the side of ordinary families when his policy of taking government out of social policy completely will do the complete opposite.

  • http://twitter.com/bencooper86/status/8076905874 Ben Cooper

    RT @Jessica_Asato: Excellent stuff by @leftfootfwd on crime stats http://bit.ly/511anI #brokenbritain

  • http://twitter.com/bevaniteellie/status/8077017606 Ellie Gellard

    great stuff from @leftfootfwd refuting Cameron's politics of fear http://tinyurl.com/ylrdl74

  • http://twitter.com/jamescowley/status/8077055722 James Cowley

    RT @BevaniteEllie: great stuff from @leftfootfwd refuting Cameron's politics of fear http://tinyurl.com/ylrdl74

  • http://twitter.com/amolrajan/status/8077075349 amol rajan

    i'm inclined to agree RT @Jessica_Asato Excellent stuff by @leftfootfwd on crime stats http://bit.ly/511anI

  • Joe

    Good post Tim. Whenever I ask people, out of interest, what they think has happened to the rate of crime over the past 13 years, they inevitably say it’s gone up. Sensationalist reporting and conjecture really masks one of Labours greatest achievements.

  • http://www.ubervu.com/conversations/www.leftfootforward.org/2010/01/cameron-sending-out-mixed-messages-over-sure-start-crime-and-family/ uberVU – social comments

    Social comments and analytics for this post…

    This post was mentioned on Twitter by leftfootfwd: Cameron sending out mixed messages over Sure Start, crime and family: http://is.gd/6OiMw...

  • http://www.leftfootforward.org/2010/02/weak-link-grayling-wrong-on-the-facts-wrong-on-the-stats/ Weak link Grayling: Wrong on the facts, wrong on the stats | Left Foot Forward

    [...] Left Foot Forward reported last month, the “Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Homicides, Firearm Offences and Intimate [...]

  • http://www.leftfootforward.org/2010/03/cover-up-grayling-fails-to-release-full-details-of-study-showing-rise-in-violent-crime/ Grayling fails to release details of “study” showing rise in violent crime | Left Foot Forward

    [...] Foot Forward has previously reported that violent crime is down, on a range of indicators, both in the past year and over the [...]