Ulster safest in Britain

Press, 29 May 1985, Page 34

Ulster safest in Britain

NZPA-AAP I London l Amid the bombings, murders, and terrorism, Northern Ireland has emerged as the safest place ito live in Britain. That is the finding of official statistics which compare crime I rates in England, Scotland, Wales, and the troubled province of Ulster. The “Irish Tijnes” said the 1985 “regional trends” edition from the British Central Statistical Office in London showed that Northern Ireland had [the lowest over all figures of any British region in the latest year available, 1983. I In spite of the sectarian savagery in the province for 16 years, there was a much lower incidence | of violent

crime generally than anywhere else. Ulster people were less likely to be physically attacked, sexually assaulted, or suffer criminal damage and, ironically, more likely to be robbed. The total crime rate, at 4112 notifiable offences per 100,000 population, was well below any other region and compared with 8703 in Scotland, 7741 for the north of England, and 6595 for England as a whole. The rates for violent crime were also down on the mainland at 189 per 100,000 compared to 225 in England and 212 in Wales. However, the Northern Irish robbery rate of 120 per 100,000 was well ahead of the next region, Scotland, with 81.