Politics

More than one million thefts were left unsolved across England and Wales last year, according to analysis from Labour.

The party has said it is “disgraceful” 1,145,254 cases were dropped because the police failed to find a suspect.

The analysis also shows the average cost of a domestic burglary for a family was £1,400, meaning millions had been lost due to unsolved crimes.

And the overall charge rate – the proportion of crimes where a suspect is arrested and charged – has fallen to just 5.4%, compared to over 15% seven years ago.

The statistics come two months after the National Police Chief’s Council pledged to send officers to all home burglaries for the first time.

Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said theft and burglaries were “awful crimes” and “should be properly investigated, not just left for the victims to make an insurance claim”.

She accused the current home secretary Suella Braverman of having “no plan to turn this around”, adding that she was “instead obsessed with gimmicks rather than a serious plan to catch more criminals”.

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Ms Cooper claimed Labour had a “fully costed plan” if they took power to put 13,000 extra neighbourhood police on the streets, “fighting crime at its source and supporting communities”.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “As the home secretary has made clear, we welcome the commitment for police attendance at home burglaries.

“We continue to support the police, including through record investment and the recruitment of 20,000 additional officers by March 2023.”