General Election 2024: What are the political parties promising to do about crime in the UK?

In Brief...

• Conservatives: Plan to recruit 8,000 new officers, enhance police powers with facial recognition and knife seizure, and introduce tougher penalties for violent crimes and domestic violence.
• Labour: Proposes thousands of new neighborhood police officers, a rebranded ASBO as "Respect Orders," and fast-tracked court cases for rape, with comprehensive support for victims.
• Liberal Democrats: Focus on visible community policing, guaranteed police response to burglaries, tackling court backlogs, and supporting survivors of violence through mandatory training for police and prosecutors.
• Green Party: Emphasizes restorative justice, reducing prison population, and addressing the root causes of crime such as poverty and inequality.
• Reform UK: Advocates for stronger sentencing, more police on the streets, and a focus on serious crimes and anti-social behaviour.
  

A look at crime in the UK

UK crime figures make for bleak reading in 2024. While crimes – especially against women, girls and minority groups – are on the rise, the number of police on our streets continues to fall.

Official figures from the Office of National Statistics showed a 4% rise in crimes in England and Wales in the year ending June 2023, when compared to numbers from the previous year.

There was a notable increase in shoplifting last year, with some people admitting they had stolen food to combat the effects of the cost of living crisis that has gripped our nation.

Police officer numbers in the UK have stayed relatively constant in the UK during the Conservatives 14 years in power. In 2010 there were 171,600 officers. This had dropped slightly to 170,775 by March 2023.

But judging by the growth in crime across the UK, this number is no longer enough to stay on top of the serious crime taking place across the country, and all eyes will be on the next government to put tough plans into place to make our cities, towns, homes and lives much safer.

What have The Conservatives promised?

Policing our streets will always be a key part of any party's manifesto and plans for the country.

The Conservatives state that they grew UK police officer numbers by 20,951 by April 2023, after investing £540 million in policing – and in their manifesto claim to have recruited “record numbers” during their time in power.

This, however, contradicts the Parliament statistics which show a slight decline in numbers - which is in part due to the number of officers leaving the force.

But what would they do with another five years in power?

• Recruit 8,000 new officers who will be focused on policing communities, and be "dedicated to neighbourhood policing".
• Give police officers facial recognition technology to track criminals, and powers to seize knives from anyone carrying them. They will be backed in using "lawful and professional use of force", but alongside a "fair and proportionate accountability system".
• Drink-spiking, creating sexual deepfakes and taking intimate images without consent will be made new offences.
• There will be 25-year prison terms for domestic violence murders, and a defence of "rough sex" will never be permitted in court as an excuse in murder cases. Rapists will also face life sentences for their crimes.
• A continued crackdown on protests, saying the UK has seen "shocking increases" in protests being used as "a cover for extremist disruption".
• The police will also be given stronger powers to prevent protests considered to pose a risk of "serious disorder", and they will be banned from taking place outside schools.
• There are also new commitments to crack down on both antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred in the UK, saying the Conservatives do not tolerate either. The party has pledged £54 million to protect the safety of Jewish schools and synagogues, and has committed to spend £117 million for protection of Mosques in the UK.

You can read the Conservatives full 2024 manifesto here.

What has Labour promised?

The Labour manifesto claims it will "take back our streets" – although does not specify from who, or what. It is, however, quite specific in blaming the Conservatives' 14 years in power on a rise of gang culture, drug dealing and violence, due to a decline in police officers available to tackle crime in the UK.

But what would Labour do about these issues? Here's some of what they are promising when it comes to crime in the UK.

• 'Thousands' of new police officers to patrol UK town centres under its planned Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, saying communities will have a named officer dealing with issues in their area.
• A rebranded ASBO, which will be known as a Respect Order. These will ban individuals from town centres, public drinking and drug use, and even apply to fly-tippers and vandals, who will have to clean up any mess they’ve made.
• Protection for shop workers from violence by making attacks on them a specific offence, saying the rise of shoplifting can put retail staff in dangerous situations.
• There will be "tough consequences" for anyone carrying a knife, with punishments including referral to a Youth Offending Team, a plan to prevent reoffending, curfews, tagging and even time in custody. Some of the most lethal blades available in the UK will be banned.
• Rape and sexual assault teams in every police force to work on crimes against women and girls, while rape cases will be fast-tracked in the court system. Drink-spiking will be made a new criminal offence, and women stalked online will be given the right to know the identity of who has been targeting them.
• How prisoners spend their time behind bars would be changed, with more learning opportunities for people in jail, plus more options to find employment once released through working with local employers and the voluntary sector.

You can read the Labour party’s full manifesto here.

What have the Liberal Democrats promised?

The Liberal Democrats have promised to "build communities where people can truly feel safe". But how do they plan to go about that?

• The party has promised to restore "proper" community policing, saying it will make officers visible and trusted. It also says their priority will be on preventing and solving crimes, especially rape and other serious, violent crimes.
• It is also guaranteeing that police will attend all burglary crime scenes, and properly investigate each incident.
• The backlog of cases waiting to go to court will be tackled with new investment.
• There will be a focus on rehabilitating prisoners inside of prisons, and after their release.
• Ensure survivors of violence against women and girls are supported in the criminal justice process through mandatory trainings for police and prosecutors in understanding the impact of trauma on these survivors

You can read the Liberal Democrats full 2024 manifesto here.

What has The Green Party promised?

The Green Party leads its crime pledges with promises to end violence against women and girls, saying they will "always stand up against hate crime", as well as Islamophobia and antisemitism. However, they don't share full details of how this will be achieved.

• It will also promote the rights to protest – cracked down on under the Conservatives – by scrapping the Police, Crime Sentencing and Courts Act, which they say "erodes the right to protest and free expression".
• They are also promising to "restore trust and confidence in the police", but have not given details of how this will be achieved. They have pledged a £2.5 billion investment into the UK's "crumbling" court system.

You can read the Green Party’s full 2024 manifesto here.

What has Reform UK promised?

Reform UK have made several pledges similar to those of the other UK parties when it comes to tackling crime. These include recruiting thousands of new police officers and bringing back "bobbies on the beat" in local communities. But elsewhere, there are tough new measures promised as well.

Here's some of what Reform UK has pledged.

• Anyone caught trafficking or dealing drugs will be given a mandatory life sentence, while jail terms will be imposed on anyone carrying a knife or committing violent crime.
• Increase Stop and Search substantially, calling it a "proven deterrent to knife crime."
• When it comes to recruiting people into leadership roles in the police, there will be a "strong preference" for former ex-military personnel to take these senior jobs.
• An end to all Diversity, Equality and Inclusion roles, claiming it results in "two-tier policing". This comes despite of huge rises in crimes against women, girls and minority groups in the UK in recent years.
• It has pledged £3 billion per year to meet these targets.

You can read Reform UK's full manifesto here.

What else needs to be done?

Looking deeper into crime statistics for the UK paints a dark picture.

Rape Crisis data reveals that one in four women have been raped or sexually assaulted as an adult, with an estimated 85,000 women in England and Wales experiencing such an assault every year. 70,330 rape cases were reported to the police in 2022 – the highest number on record. It's also estimated that 12,000 men aged 16-59 are raped in the UK every year, although due to a reluctancy to report these incidents, this number is likely to be much higher.

Domestic violence charity Refuge report that one in four women in England and Wales will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, and tragically two women, on average, are killed by a partner or former partner every week. Stats released by the Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that only 5% of domestic violence cases reported to police resulted in a criminal conviction.

Hate crime has also seen a startling rise across England and Wales during the Conservatives' time in power. 4,345 crimes against LGBTQ+ people were recorded in 2011/12, rising to a peak of 26,152 in 2021/22, before dipping slightly to 24,102 in 2022/23, according to data from reporting organisation Statista.

Racial hate crime has also followed a similar trajectory. In 2011/12 there were 35,944 reports of hate-crimes motivated by race, rising to 109,843 in 2021/22, which then decreased to 101,906 in 2022/23.

Cases of child abuse are also on the rise, with 32,961 incidents recorded by police in England and Wales in 2022/23, compared to 6,081 in 2011/12.

Like many other issues facing the UK as we race towards a General Election, all parties agree that when it comes to crime, something needs to be done.

It’s just a question of what, and whose policies will be best suited to deal with the many issues facing society and threatening our safety in 2024.

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