A university academic has warned that proposals to cut crime in the general election manifestos of the five main political parties are ‘seriously misleading‘.
Jon Silverman from the University of Bedfordshire has contributed to a guide on crime policy which claims proposals for reducing it ignore the available evidence.
Making Sense of Crime, published by Sense About Science, is published today, and brings together the thoughts of a range of experts.
Prof Silverman, formerly a BBC Home Affairs Correspondent, said: “Media and politicians have colluded to short-change the public about understanding crime and what works to reduce it.
“This analysis is a long overdue corrective.”
Prateek Buch, director of the Evidence Matters campaign at Sense About Science, added: “Politicians of all stripes, journalists and think tanks make sweeping statements about the causes of crime and policies to tackle it.
“The best available evidence says they’re wrong, so instead of being misled or having wool pulled over our eyes, it’s time for people to ask for evidence behind crime policy and demand that public figures take account of reliable evidence.”
Making Sense of Crime is available at http://www.senseaboutscience.org/pages/crime.html
