Crime statistics published - Accurate data is essential

IF crime statistics are not accurate and up to date, then it seems all but impossible to manage policing resources properly.

If crime statistics are not reliable and contemporary, then it seems reasonable to argue that a police force is not in a position to deliver optimal performance to the communities that depend on it. Neither is it in a position to argue as strongly as it might for extra resources.

Late last year, the CSO delayed the publication of quarterly crime data because it was unhappy with the “statistical implications” of a Garda Inspectorate report. It seemed as if our old friend — self regulation — was to undermine credibility in our public affairs one more time.

That report was finally published yesterday and it records that approximately 18% of crimes reported to An Garda Síochána in 2011 do not appear to have been recorded on the Garda Pulse computer system. It also records that one in six crimes created from paper records in 2011 did not appear to be captured on Pulse. It also, most worryingly, found that 7% of domestic disputes which were classified to a non-crime category should have been classified as a crime. This confirms the existence of a culture that does not always treat domestic violence a firmly as it should.

There have been almost unprecedented changes in our police force since 2011, and it must be hoped those changes will lead to more accurate crime statistics in the future.