By Steve Bargeton, political editor

CRIME LEVELS in Scotland fell last year with the number of violent crimes reported dropping to its lowest level since the establishment of the Scottish Parliament.

Official figures out yesterday showed that the overall number of crimes committed last year fell by more than 20,000 to 417,785 and there was a 7% drop in the number of violent crimes, down to 13,726.

Recorded crime fell in seven out of the eight police forces areas, with a small increase in the Grampian area. Fife Police saw the largest drop in recorded crime, with cases down by 13%.

Sex crimes were down 10% to 6588, the lowest total for four years.

However the number of rapes and attempted rapes went up 5% to 1161—the highest total ever. Ministers said this reflected an increase in the number of rapes being reported.

Drug crime was also on the increase, rising by 6% to 44,247 in 2005-06.

The figures revealed there had been a 10% drop in housebreaking last year, down to a total of 31,319. The total number of crimes of dishonesty decreased for the seventh year in a row to 187,798, a fall of 11% from 2004-05.

Recorded crimes of vandalism, including fire-raising, fell by 1% to 127,889.

There was also a reduction in the number of recorded offences—which includes more minor crimes such as motoring offences and cases of breach of the peace and drunkenness. These dropped by 6% from 2004-05 to a total of 593,816.

This was largely due to a 20% fall in speeding offences, with the number of drivers caught going too fast down from 210,120 to 167,724.

Welcoming the figures, Justice Minister Cathy Jamieson said, “We now have a clearer picture of crime levels in Scotland and by most measures they are falling.

“That is good news for decent, law-abiding Scots who want to feel safe on the streets and in their homes.”

The Scottish Tories welcomed the drop in recorded crime, but said more police on the beat were needed.

Tory party leader Annabel Goldie said three out of four crimes went unreported.

“With only one out of four crimes reported to the police and only about 10% of crimes recorded actually resulting in a conviction, it is hardly surprising that the public is losing faith in the Scottish justice system,” she said.

“Increasing the number of police on the beat will not only help to deter and detect crime, but will give the public the type of policing they demand and need.”

The SNP pledged to put an extra 1000 officers on the beat if elected in May.

“A visible police presence is essential to deter crime as well as ensuring communities feel safer, which is why next year an SNP government will put 1000 more police on the beat,” said justice spokesman Kenny MacAskill.

“Next year it’s a straight choice between Labour or the SNP, who will tackle the root cause of many crimes in Scotland: drink, drugs and deprivation.”

Fife Chief Constable Peter Wilson, speaking for the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (Acpos), said, “To achieve an overall drop in crime is tremendous, especially when you consider that we now have our strictest-ever crime recording regime in place, ensuring that anything reported as a crime is recorded as such.”