A staggering 79% of burglaries went unsolved in Essex in the 2022/2023 financial year – an average of 15 a day, new analysis has revealed.

The figures, from official Home Office statistics, show that in 2022/2023, a total of 5344 burglaries in Essex were closed without a suspect being identified, accounting for 79% of all cases. Meanwhile, just 5% of Essex burglaries resulted in a suspect being charged or summonsed.

The national figures paint a similarly dire picture. Across England and Wales, nearly 77% of all burglaries went unsolved in that same time period.

Colchester Liberal Democrats have slammed the Government for these figures. Since 2015, the Conservatives have taken over 4,000 Police Community Support Officers off the streets. And as of last year, just 12% of officers across England and Wales were assigned to frontline neighbourhood policing teams.
The Liberal Democrats are calling for a return to proper community policing, where officers are trusted and visible in their neighbourhoods, with the time and resources to focus on tackling local crimes like burglaries. The party is also calling for a new “Burglary Response Guarantee” under which all domestic burglaries would be attended by the police and properly investigated. 

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Martin Goss, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for Colchester, said: 

“Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their own homes. But under this terrible Government, so many burglars are getting off scot-free. These figures will bring little comfort to families and pensioners in Colchester.
“It’s a disgrace that our local communities are paying the price for the Conservative Government’s failures to get tough on burglaries.

“The Conservatives must finally bring back proper community policing and back the Liberal Democrats Burglary Response Guarantee so all burglaries are attended by the police. It’s the only way to reverse these shocking figures.”