UK is violent crime capital of Europe
This article from the Telegraph was a real surprise to me. In fact it turns out it’s a pretty good candidate for violent crime capital of the world.
The total number of violent offences recorded compared to population is higher than any other country in Europe, as well as America, Canada, Australia and South Africa.
According to the article, 2,000 crimes were recorded per 100,00 people. By comparison, only 466 per 100,000 were reported in the US. I think that it is true the United States is no where close to being as violent a country as people from other countries think it is, due in large part to our movies and media, but also think standards may be different.
Ministers admitted that some police forces had not been recording offences of grievous bodily harm with intent as serious violent crime. When the offences were included violent crime figures immediately increased by a fifth.Separate figures disclosed in May showed that the number of people requiring hospital treatment after being seriously hurt in street fights or assaults has risen 50 per cent in five years.More than 20 people a day were taken to hospital accident and emergency departments in England last year after being hit, kicked, scratched or bitten. Alcohol is blamed as a factor in half of the incidents and raises further questions over 24-hour drinking.
In a country where violent crime so often involves guns and knives, it’s not hard to imagine that people who were simply “scratched or bitten” might have been overlooked.