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Crime continues to fall on Merseyside
STATISTICS
released by the Home Office on Thursday, 19 January 2012, show crime
continues to fall on Merseyside with a reduction of 41% over the
last five years since 2005/06.
This year sees the
Force reducing the number of victims in our area by a further 3.1%
since last year and we hope to keep building on these successes in
the years to come.
The figures show
the Force has achieved significant reductions in violence, vehicle
crime and criminal damage while encouraging greater reporting by
victims of sexual offences.
Assistant Chief
Constable Helen King, said:-
"I am pleased to report that crime has
again fallen here on Merseyside which means that fewer people have
been victims and our towns and city remain safe places to live in,
work and visit. For the past five years we have seen continual
reductions amounting to over 69,000 fewer offences since 2005 and we
remain committed to doing all we can to provide the best possible
policing service to the people of Merseyside. I would like to take
this opportunity to thank our partners and the people of Merseyside
in helping us to see further reductions in all reported crime in the
area. It is positive news that in Merseyside, incidents of violence
are lower than the national average. On Merseyside we have seen a
fall of 10% in reports of violence compared to a 7.9% drop
nationally. This is reflective of the hard work and dedication of
our officers and partners in reducing this violent crime in our
communities with a wide-range of initiatives to tackle alcohol and
drug-related violence. We also work closely with partners to reduce
domestic violence. All of these specific initiatives helped in
bringing about this significant reduction in violent crimes. Both
vehicle crime and incidents of criminal damage have fallen at a
greater rate than the national average. Vehicle crime is down by
10.9% compared to a 7.9% drop nationally. In fact Merseyside Police
has a lower rate of vehicle crime than areas such as
Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and Gwent."
Following the
formation in 2010 of a dedicated rape investigation
'Unity' team in which specialist detectives work
alongside expert CPS lawyers to build cases, the number of sexual
offences reported to the police has continued to rise.
ACC King said:-
"Although we recognise
the devastating impact a sexual offence can have on the victim we
are encouraged by this continued increased as we do not want victims
to suffer in silence. Sexual offences have historically been vastly
under-reported in the UK but by providing a dedicated support
service to victims, we are seeing more cases reach court and more
offenders prosecuted. This in turn builds confidence in other
victims who see justice being done and are courageous enough to tell
the police what has happened to them. All of these achievements are
testament to the dedication and commitment of our officers and staff
and the work we do with our partners and communities. However we are
not complacent and will keep striving to provide an excellent police
service to the people of Merseyside."
Chairman of
Merseyside Police Authority, Cllr Bill Weightman, said:-
"Crime continues to fall in
Merseyside which is a major achievement for Merseyside Police, and
proof that decisions taken by Merseyside Police Authority have
protected frontline services as much as possible during the current
period of change. The reduction in overall crime, and especially the
significant reductions we have seen in violence, criminal damage and
vehicle crime, are also evidence our police officers and staff
remain dedicated to the task in hand despite the challenging
financial environment."
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Winning artists'
work is just the ticket!
 MERSEYTRAVEL has announced
the winners of its annual Art on the Network Competition for 2011.
The 3rd annual Art on the Network competition, which focused on
poster art, offered artists from across Merseyside the chance to
showcase their work to thousands of commuters and visitors, with the
winning entries being incorporated into limited edition Merseytravel
publications.
The winner of the Modes of Transport category was Daniel Lindsay of
Skelmersdale for his piece entitled 'Connecting people', Lawrence
Langton from Hale Village won the Information category with his
submission 'Hale Village 82A' and David Williams from Wallasey took
the Attractions and Days Out category prize for his work
'Discover
Liverpool'. Each of the 3 winners receives a Ā£500 cash prize and a commemorative
copy of the publication featuring their winning entry.
Councillor Mark Dowd, Chair of Merseytravel said:-
"This
year's competition was slightly different, by just focussing on
poster art it challenged the artist to come up with an original idea
within a tighter confine than in previous years and once again the
people of Merseyside did not disappoint!"
Jim Barclay, Merseytravel Interim Chief Executive and Director
General added:- "We had some highly creative entries and we
are delighted that the winning submissions will be seen by thousands
of people as they travel across the network."
The 2012 Art on the Network competition
will be launched in April a
further details will be available online at:-
merseytravel.gov.uk and
on:-
artonthenetwork.co.uk.
Stand by (mini) me
YOUNG people from a Liverpool primary school are to perform
with world famous band The Drifters. Pupils at Pinehurst Primary
School in Anfield have been chosen to sing with the group when they
play the Liverpool Empire as part of their Masquerade Tour on
Sunday, 29 January 2012. But on Monday, 23 January 2012, Michael
Williams from the band visited the school to run a music workshop
with the 20 pupils, who are aged from 8 to 11. They all rehearse the
2 songs that they will be performing 'Stand By Me'
and 'Saturday Night at the Movies' during
the visit.
Headteacher Stephanie Tasker said the:-
"Our children were really excited to learn they'd been selected to
perform with The Drifters. They have been rehearsing hard to make
sure they know the words to the songs as well as finding out more
about the history of the group."
Councillor Jane Corbett, cabinet member
for education, said:- "It will be a fantastic experience
for the young people to get on stage in front of thousands of
people."
Did you know that... The Drifters are one
of the longest running pop groups in history? They were formed in
1953 and have collated a huge catalogue of over 50 hits, selling
over 214 million singles and 114 million albums across the world. In
2011 they performed 77 concerts watched by a total audience of
100,000 people!
Food waste is "throwing away money"
THE Euro-MP Chris Davies is backing a call by the European
Parliament for a plan to curb the waste of huge quantities of food!
Studies estimate that as much as 50% of food gets wasted each year
by supermarkets, food manufacturers and in homes. A parliamentary
report based on the study wants governments across Europe to set targets for reducing
food waste. The report recommends improvements at every stage of the food
chain, including storage, processing and distribution.
The Liberal
Democrat MEP described the current situation as
"shocking." Davies said that:- "We are
wasting 90 million tonnes of perfectly edible food each year,
despite the fact that across Europe some 16 million people depend on
charitable food handouts. Putting 50% of all the food we produce in
the bin is just throwing away money." |
