Crime in Britain.

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 507.

Read the text and right down the main idea (5-8 sentences).

II. Reading activities.

Underline the one word in each group that is different.

Match the words taken from the text to their definitions.

I. Pre-reading activities.

Unit 4.

1. larceny, mugging, carjacking, abduction.

2. punishment, exculpation, penalty, chastisement.

3. discharge, imprison, confine, incarcerate.

4. damage, injury, recovery, harm.

Crime has increased in Britain, as in many countries, since the early 1950s, though recently the number of crimes reported to the police has fallen. In 1996 there were 9 700 crimes for every 100 000 people, of which the police solved 27 %. Over 60 000 people are in prison for crimes they have committed.

People living in inner city and urban areas are the ones most likely to be victims of crime. Burglary is twice as likely there as elsewhere. Theft (=stealing goods or property) is the commonest crime, though it fell by 14 % in the period 1992-1995. Car theft is relatively common: in 1995 almost one in five car owners had their car stolen, or had property stolen from inside it. Criminal damage or vandalism is an increasing problem. Offences that involve loss or damage to property account for 92 % of all crime.

The number of violent crimes is increasing. Murders and different types of assault (=violent attack) are usually widely reported by the media. The number of rape cases reported to the police went up by 50 % between 1988 and 1992. Robbery and mugging also increased significantly. Racially-motivated attacks and crimes against children, especially sexual abuse and paedophilia (sexual acts on children), arouse public anger and concern about moral standards.

In 1995 guns were used in 13 000 crimes in England and Wales. The killing of a class of schoolchildren at Dunblane, Scotland in 1996 greatly increased public feeling against people being allowed to own guns and resulted in two Acts of Parliament banning public ownership of handguns. Since 1996 there have also been restrictions on the manufacture of some types of knives. It is now illegal to sell sharp-bladed knives to people under 16.