Letter: Austerity and liberal attitudes help fan the growth in crime
I can't say I was surprised to read in the Star that crime in our region is on the increase.
If you consider the fact that we have depleted our once proficient police service to the point where they are now a virtually non-existent rarity on our streets, and lights are switched off at night, all under the auspices of austerity, then it's little wonder that elderly people are afraid to step out at night or leave their homes unattended as reported.
Couple this with the advent of mass immigration and we have the perfect storm.
I say this in expectation of cries of racist from our ruling liberal elite, who rejoice in telling us that other diverse cultures are enriching our own, but to put it bluntly, I for one can't see the Emperor's new clothes.
It can't be pure coincidence that violent crime, much of it drink or drugs related, and serious sexual offences are showing the fastest rates of growth. To pretend there is no connection, being it out of misguided political correctness or an inability to grasp the blindingly obvious, is in itself an act of criminal negligence on the part of those responsible for the welfare and safety of law-abiding people. The police commissioner's patronising platitudes only go to undermine his tremulous credibility and the integrity of his scriptwriters.
One can see from the figures that the majority of reported crime goes undetected anyway, and yet in the forthcoming spending review police numbers are to suffer further reductions.
I read that the morale of police officers is, understandably, at an all-time low, as is that of the judiciary who have had their ability to give realistic sentences reduced to a slap on the wrist. It's utter madness.
Instead of spending billions on renewing Trident, we should be building more prisons and treating the police force as our first line of defence and resourcing it accordingly.
AJ Willetts, Craven Arms
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