Tougher Justice Is the Only Answer to Britain’s Crime Epidemic

Britain is now gripped by a crimewave unlike anything in recent history. According to shocking new figures, shoplifting, fraud, and muggings have soared to record levels. A theft is now committed every minute in the UK, with shoplifting alone up 20% in a year and muggings rising by 15%. Fraud has surged by an unprecedented 31%, with more than 4 million cases annually. The response from our political leaders? Weak, ineffective, and devoid of any real deterrent.

It is no wonder that public confidence in the police and justice system is plummeting. When thieves can walk free with little more than a caution - or no consequences at all - what incentive do they have to stop?

This is why the recent announcement that Colin Sutton, the highly respected former detective who led the Levi Bellfield and other high profile investigations, is joining Reform UK as Police and Crime Adviser, is so significant. With a pledge to halve crime in five years, Reform proposes real, practical steps: reopening 300 police stations, giving every frontline officer a Taser, ending the wasteful pursuit of online speech crimes, and recruiting 30,000 more officers.

But even these positive steps must go further. As a nation, we must decide that crime will always have consequences. All crime - not just the violent or high-profile cases. The current soft-touch approach sends entirely the wrong message.

We need a new social contract: if someone chooses to steal, defraud, or harm others, they forfeit the support of the state. Offenders should lose access to benefits - they have breached the trust that underpins those entitlements. Theft - whether £250 from a shop or millions through fraud - should lead to assets being confiscated and returned to the victim. Restitution must come before rehabilitation.

Carrying a knife must never result in a mere caution. It should mean prison, full stop. The same for firearms - at least a decade behind bars, no exceptions. And when it comes to murder, a 30-year minimum sentence should be the absolute baseline. Anything less is an insult to the victims and their families.

Only through certainty of punishment and meaningful consequences will we begin to restore order. It’s not about vengeance - it’s about justice, deterrence, and protecting the law-abiding majority. We must also remember that many offences are committed by repeat offenders - and when those offenders are behind bars, they are not out committing more crimes. The public is protected. If a murderer is locked away for a whole life term, he or she never reoffends - and innocent lives are saved.

For too long, we have tolerated a system where criminals operate with impunity and victims are left picking up the pieces. The tide must turn. Reform UK’s crime strategy, under Colin Sutton’s guidance, offers at least a step in the right direction. But the nation must go further still if we are to reclaim our streets and rebuild a safer society.