Crime in the United Kingdom

Crime in the United Kingdom describes acts of violent crime and non-violent crime that take place within the United Kingdom. Courts and police systems are separated into three sections, based on the different judicial systems of England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Responsibility for crime in England and Wales is split between the Home Office, the government department responsible for reducing and preventing crime, along with law enforcement in the United Kingdom; and the Ministry of Justice, which runs the Justice system, including its courts and prisons. In Scotland, this responsibility falls on the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, which acts as the sole public prosecutor in Scotland, and is therefore responsible for the prosecution of crime in Scotland.

The Crime Survey for England and Wales 2015 figures show that crime in the UK is currently at its lowest level since the CSEW began in 1981, having decreased dramatically from its peak in 1995 and by 31% in the past five years alone. For example, 1.32 million violent crimes were counted in 2014/2015 compared to 4.2 million in 1994/95.

By contrast, official police crime statistics in the United Kingdom are unreliable, due to widespread and inconsistent practices of "no criming", with 19% of reported overall crimes not recorded by police, one quarter of sexual crimes, one third of violent crimes, and 37% of rapes.

There are two kinds of criminal trial in England and Wales: 'summary' and 'on indictment'. For an adult, summary trials take place in a magistrates' court, while trials on indictment take place in the Crown Court. Despite the possibility of two venues for trial, almost all criminal cases, however serious, commence in the magistrates' courts. Offences may also be deemed 'either way', depending on the seriousness of the individual offence. This means they may be tried in either the Magistrates or Crown Court depending on the circumstances. A person may even be convicted by the Magistrates court and sent to the Crown for sentence (where the magistrates feel they do not have adequate sentencing powers). Further more, even if the Magistrates retain the jurisdiction of an offence, the defendant has the right to elect a Crown Court trial by jury.

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