Roots of Delinquency

There is considerable public awareness of and alarm at apparent rises in the amount of crime. In their review of trends McClintock and Avison (1968) observed that

... the number of crimes recorded by the police increased from 438,085 in 1955 to 1,133,882 in 1965. This represents an overall increase of 159% and an annual gross rate of approximately 10%. During these recent eleven years there has, of course, been a substantial increase in the population of England and Wales, but even when the annual volume of crime is related to the size of the population, the upward trend is still marked.... The actual incidence of crime per 100,000 of the population increased from 986 in 1955 to 2,374 in 1965. This somewhat more refined assessment still gives an increase of 141% for the eleven year period. [p. 33]

Debate continues as to how far such apparent increases are the result of greater public willingness to report crime and greater police willingness to prosecute, but it is indisputable that expenditure on crime is rising. McClintock and Avison (1968) showed that during the years 1954 to 1965 not only did the total number of larcenies and break-in offences more than double, but also the estimated average value of property stolen per theft (excluding robbery) almost doubled and the estimated overall value of property stolen rose by a factor of five. The most recent (1974) published official statistics of the value of property stolen (that is to say, reported offences of burglary, theft and robbery) have been used to estimate that its value was in excess of forty-four million pounds. The cost of services associated with crime has also risen. Martin and Wilson (1969) noted that between 1950 and 1965 the cost of the police, at 1969 prices, rose by 200 per cent and that

... during the fifteen years from 1950 to 1965 the police share of gross national expenditure, although subject to fluctuations, increased substantially. Gross national expenditure rose by 163%, public spending (excluding defence) by 202% and the cost of the police service by 256%.