Crime cartography

Crime maps detailing the locations and time of crimes will help the public hold their local police force to account, according to the Home Secretary. Jackie Smith says that the maps, to be produced annually, will raise public confidence in the police and make communities safer. “By rolling out upto- date, interactive crime maps we can better inform people about crime problems in their area and enable them to have much more of a say in what their local police focus on,” she says. James Scott-Lee of the the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors predicted that publicising high crime areas in such detail could wipe thousands of pounds off house prices overnight.