ASC

Central Edinburgh shown to be the crime capital of Scotland

05/06/06

THE CENTRE of Edinburgh has been identified as Scotland's crime capital, according to the most detailed picture of crime ever compiled.

More offences were committed in an area covering Princes Street and the rest of the New Town than in any other part of the country, according to a breakdown of every recorded crime in Scotland last year.

The data, obtained by the Sunday Times using the Freedom of Information Act, will enable people, for the first time, to identify crime levels and trends in their neighbourhood.

More drug offences, acts of vandalism, fire-raising and crimes involving offensive weapons were committed in Craigmillar, in Edinburgh, than anywhere else.

As expected, more murders, attempted murders, serious assaults and robberies were committed in the centre of Glasgow than in any other area. However, contrary to popular perception, it was the centre of Edinburgh, not Glasgow, which was most crime-ridden overall. Almost 5,000 crimes were committed in the area, which covers Rose Street and George Street, the city's top nightlife destinations, as well as the New Town which includes some of the country's most expensive properties.

The area had the country's third-highest rates for murder and violence as well as having high number of crimes of dishonesty, public disorder and drug offences.

Aberdeen Central recorded the second highest number of crimes followed by Holyrood and an area covering the centre of Glasgow from Buchanan Street to Queen Street.

The fifth highest crime hotspot was around Elgin and Barnhill in Morayshire, which has high levels of antisocial behaviour and motoring offences.

The statistics, provided by every police force in Scotland, were broken down into 1,100 police beats and cover seven crime groups violence, sexual crime, dishonesty, fire-raising and malicious damage, drugs and weapons, petty assaults and anti-social behaviour and, finally, motoring offences.

? The full crime statistics can be viewed at www.timesonline.co.uk/scottish