According to figures released by Police Scotland, the overall crime rates in the country have dropped 4.7% in the last year, but the number of sexual assaults and abuse cases has risen. Police Scotland has put this increase down to improvements in the way in which cases are handled and investigated, and also down to an improvement in sentiment and greater confidence for victims of these types of attack.
There has long been a gap in the number of sex crimes that are believed to have been committed compared to the number that are reported, and this has largely been down to public confidence. Whereas a murder is reported without fail, victims of sexual assault and rape often choose not to approach the police or report the incident, either because they are afraid of the perceived shame or because they do not believe that the reports will be taken seriously.
However, sentiment has changed notably in the past few years, and especially since high profile cases involving celebrities have hit the headlines. Operation Yewtree, which arose as a result of reported sexual crimes committed by shamed entertainer Jimmy Saville, has seen many more people willing to come forward, and especially because media and police sentiment has been shown to be behind the victims.
Between April 2014 and March 2015, there were 55 murders reported in Scotland, which is two fewer than the year before. Attempted murder and serious assault figures also declined during this period, while violent crime rates fell by 6% overall. The detection rate was 84%, but the number of sexual crimes recorded increased by 9.3%. Rather than being alarmed by these figures, however, Police Scotland has attributed the increase to the change in the way in which such crimes are reported, and the fact that victims are now more likely to report them.
Police Scotland also said that they have made significant in-roads into organised crime in the country, and said that “user satisfaction” with the police force is at a very high level, and has continued to improve since the introduction of a unified service.
