The overall number of crimes reported in Waltham Forest between September 2007 and September 2008 were 25,771. This is believed to have risen to 26,962 from September 2008 to September 2009.

Deputy Borough Commander Sue Williams, (before the article was mysteriously pulled by the Waltham Forest guardian), was quoted as saying she thinks this is partly because of "the effect of the recession" and partly because more people are reporting crime. She did not mention any other reasons.

I wonder. Unless the police have arrested people and thereby worked out why they have been doing what they are alleged to have done, putting things down to 'the recession' seems a bit pat to me. I think things are more complex. Crime was well above average before Lehmam Brothers took a dive. I would tend to the view that being seriously under-policed has more to do with things.

By under-policed, I don't mean not enough bums on seats, though there are suspicions you hear about the place of people using their time sitting in their offices making up numbers. I mean not enough well-lead police out on the streets fighting the gangs or responding urgently to urgent calls from the public for assistance.

The police have, to be fair, also had to deal with a somewhat higher murder rate than they would want as of late, but even here, they have yet to arrest anyone for the murders of Melita Jo and Michelle Samaraweera. For the life of me I can't see what the recession would have to do with either of these womens' deaths.