Tayside Police chief constable draws link between joblessness and crime
Chief Constable Justine Curran has admitted rising unemployment could have a negative impact on crime in Tayside.
Justine Curran.
- By Richard Burdge
- Published in the Courier : 16.11.10
- Published online : 16.11.10 @ 08.40am
Questioned by members of the Tayside Joint Police Board when they met in Perth, she said she did not want to scaremonger, but a link existed.
"In Dundee when unemployment was double it is now, crime was double," said the chief constable.
She said that when there was a "distinct hike in unemployment," a rise in crime was a trend that tended to follow.
Her comments were made in response to Councillor Peter Mulheron who asked if there were statistics available to show links between crimes and drink and drug abuse and unemployment.
Assistant chief constable Bill Harkins said it was clear that these factors existed in different combinations with many of the people who came to the attention of the police.
He said this was why it was very important to attempt to "break the cycle" of offending and he welcomed the fact that in recent months 20 people had accepted referral opportunities to seek assistance with drug problems as a result of work done by the police and their partners.
"If we are ever going to tackle drug misuse, we need to get people into treatment," said Mr Harkins.
The comments came during an operational policing update to the board, which outlined a number of notable drug seizures in Tayside during the summer including a Perth haul of heroin with a street value of £100,000.
The update also revealed that there had been a sharp increase over the past six months of housebreaking (up 40%) and of break-ins to sheds and garages (up 74%).
Mr Harkins was able to assure the board members that a great deal was being done to cope with this situation and the number of cases had been reduced significantly.
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