New police figures show overall crime rates falling

According to the new data, reported crime overall is down by 3.6%, meaning 104 fewer victims during the past year. Officers throughout the Borders have also solved more crime says Police Scotland, with the detection rate rising from 51.9%, to 53.6% between 2014/15 and 2015/16.

Housebreaking has been a local priority for many communities within the area and, as part of Operation RAC, policing teams have been involved in a range of enforcement and crime prevention activities to tackle this matter.

This has resulted in a drop of 24.5% in domestic break-ins, with solvency up by over 3%. The overall detection rate for domestic housebreaking in the Borders now sits at 42.3%.

Crimes of dishonesty, including theft, robbery and bogus workmen offences have also decreased by 18.9% resulting in 140 less offences occurring. Similarly, vehicle crimes such as vehicle theft and break-ins to cars and vans have also fallen by almost 18%.

However, there has been a rise in crimes such as damage, fire-raising and reckless conduct.

In total, offences of this nature are up by 15.8%, with the majority relating to vandalism, which has seen an increase of 14.4%.

Chief Inspector Andy McLean, said: “I am delighted to have seen overall crime fall by almost 4% across the Borders and this is testament to the hard work of our officers within your communities to tackle the issues that matter most to you.

“We have made significant progress in reducing housebreaking, with reported incidents falling by nearly a quarter and dishonesty offences also down considerably.”

A further priority, he said, is to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on Borders roads, which has already seen a 15% reduction so far this year.