Small Reductions in Crime Rates Between 2003 and 2006

Thursday the 28th of February 2008

When compared with figures from 2003, there was a reduction in the instances of personal crime experienced by those aged 18 years and over than in 2006. In 2006, there were an estimated 150,700 persons (4.6%) who experienced theft with violence, theft or physical assault (excluding domestic and sexual assaults). Results of the survey for both 2003 and 2006 were, however, roughly double the 2.4% instances recorded for 1998 (the only other year for which directly comparable figures are available).

There were 91,800 (5.7%) male victims of personal crimes in 2006 compared with 58,900 (3.6%) of female victims. Similarities for both sexes did occur, for example, the most at risk age groups were younger adults aged 18-24 years followed by those in the 25-44 age group. The instances of these crimes in these age categories for males were 11.3% and 6.0 % respectively. For females it was 6.4% and 4.1%. However, the survey did not cover domestic violence or sexual assault, for which the majority of victims are female.