Canada's national crime rate fell third straight year

OTTAWA — Canada's national crime rate fell in 2007 for the third straight year, with declines in everything from homicides and gun crimes to minor property offences, says a new report.

Statistics Canada says the seven per cent drop in the national crime rate was led by falling counterfeiting offences and theft under $5,000, including fewer break-ins and stolen cars.

Robbery committed with a firearm declined 12 per cent from the previous year, hitting its lowest point in three decades.

The numbers fly in the face of popular media and political messaging, which portrays crime across Canada as rising in both volume and ferocity.

Statistics Canada reports there were fewer serious violent offences such as homicides, attempted murders, sexual assaults and robberies last year.

Police reported 594 murders, down slightly from 606 in 2006, following a long-term downward trend that began in the mid-1970s.

Serious assaults, including those with a weapon, basically stayed unchanged in 2007 after rising in each of the previous seven years.

The overall crime rate among youth aged 12 to 17 tapered off slightly in 2007 after rising the year before, as non-violent offences fell and violent crime remained stable.

Violent youth crime is one trouble spot in the Canadian record. It has been increasing steadily over the last two decades, said Statistics Canada, and the rate in 2007 was "more than double that reported in the mid-1980s."

Crime rates were down in all provinces and territories, except Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon. Overall crime rates remained highest in the western provinces.

Saskatchewan's crime rate fell 3.5 per cent but still was the highest in the country, including the highest rate of violent crime. Manitoba's 62 homicides last year were up 23 from 2006, giving it the highest provincial homicide rate and Manitoba's highest murder rate since recording began in 1961.

"For the fourth year in a row, the lowest provincial (crime) rate occurred in Ontario and Quebec," said the agency.

Statistics Canada did not speculate on the causes of Canada's overall decline in crime rates but criminologists and demographers believe an aging population is a significant factor.

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Tyler - Now voting Conservative
said

Canada is getting a bad ruputation in the world as many bad people run around and do drugs or commit crimes abroad and then cry when they get caught, oh they didn't let me sleep in, my steak was well done.

I will not get a fair trial they are going to use a video of my commiting the crime and they did not have a warrant.

What embarasses Canada even further is bringing these scum bags back home, everybody else is trying to export crimminals not import them except Canada.

The previous government tried to cut crime by legalizing everything, such as marjuana as it never hurt anyone, of course except the guys collecting drug debts and dealers having shoot outs over territory or drug induced drivers on our roads or young kids introduced to drugs.

The drug centres in Vancouver provided by tax payers dollars ensure many stoned people are released onto the streets many of them with crimminal pasts and other mental problems. The drug dealers pick up new clients here and the users often go to steal for the drug dealers.

Time to get tough on crime, thats why I am voting conservative.

Trent
said

The decrease in firearm related crime is on the decrease, this proves the Gun Registry works! Oh wait a minute wasn't this program scrapped/put on the shelf a few years back, hmmmm.

Balgonie Bob
said

I like good news and this is good news for all Canadians. Who knows what individual political party, event or circumstance is responsible for this trend, so many thing contribute to such a change. One thing that can be said though, generally, we are heading in the right direction and the Liberals hate any successes under a Conservative government regardless whether it is good or bad for us.

Rocket
said

The crime rates are falling because even the criminals can't afford to do business in this country.

Whoot
said

crime rates down ..yeah I can see that HA , no one can afford the gas for a getaway car anymore HA .

Post hoc, ergo propter hoc
said

For those who believe that the drop in crime is attributable to the federal conservative government, you would do well to remember that just because two events happened consecutively does not imply that one caused the other.

Since the federal conservatives have come to power the unemployment rate has also increased. Did Harper cause that? The price of oil and gasoline has also gone up. Is that because of the conservatives?

My darling son was also born in this period. I surely hope no one will attribute that wonderful event to the prime minister....

Frank Bucahn
said

The overall crime rate is dropping because relatively minor crimes like property crimes are dropping in count. Major crimes are, to some extent, holding at relatively the same level or inching up in some specific sub-groups (youth violent crime tends to notch up, according to a story some months back on this same site). So, we have a problem, which is the shift toward crimes that are more difficult to address, which is why the police need more resources to try to address things.

As for government impact on these statistics, it's mosstly economic and social presures, so the role of government is limited. That doesn't mean we shouldn't have more defined laws, though, and that is government's rile.

kudo
said

I am sure not in British Columbia. The international center of crime. It is Alberta and the praries they spent more money to hire police that helps the result.

In Van, I heard they hired 3 more police for the next year and the city council opposed it, while giving free drug to East Hasting people.

north bc
said

Crime rates must have dropped from all those registered guns out there. LOL. Oh wait it says gun crimes stay the same after rising for seven years.

I thought you were getting rid of the registry Harper?

Jason Adams
said

I'm sure that the crime rate will continue to drop with the increase in unemployment and an economic slowdown in the east...

Mike Webster
said

These statistics are actually quite misleading. For starters, Statistics Canada does not include all crimes that an individual is charged with in their numbers. For example, if a person is charged with robbery, sexual assault and break and enter as the result of one incident, they count only the most serious of the charges (in this case, robbery) and do not count the other two very serious offences. Also, if a person is charged multiple times with the same offence, they only count 1 charge towards their stats. Dig into their website and you can read all about their methodologies there. Finally, the number of small property crimes going unreported probably eclipses the number reported and the result is the false impression of a drop in petty crime.

MartinofNS
said

Good news, I say! I wonder if it has anything to do with the Conservatives tougher stance on crime? Well conservatives have been in power since 2006, so that and 2007,and 2008...

They are living up to one of their campaign promises that's for sure!

High western crime rates!
said

What about the crime and fear campaign Harper is using? Thank God crime is still "high" in the West so we can keep blaming judges, the left and of course Dion.

wootman
said

This has everything to do with the New government of Canada and our overlord S. Harper! Woot Woot!

Cheryl
said

We keep hearing about the crime rate falling and then we hear the doom and gloom from the cops demanding more and more money. What gives?