Task 24. Read and translate the text. Crime in Britain

There is a widespread feeling among the British public that crime is increasing. Figures on this matter are difficult to evaluate. One reason for that is that not all actual crimes are necessarily reported. However every twenty-four hours the police in Britain record on the average two murders, ten rapes, 50 sexual assaults, 50 assaults causing grievous bodily harm, 113 muggings and other robberies, 2,800 burglaries, and 1,200 car thefts. Yet these figures – part of an annual total of about five million recorded crimes – represent only the tip of an iceberg. The public’s understanding of crime is not impressive. A recent survey found that two-thirds of the population believe that 50 per cent of crimes are violent offences against the person. The true figure is six per cent. This indicates that the fear of crime seems to have increased a lot. Small wonder, perhaps, that a government committee claimed¹ fear of crime to be as great a problem as crime itself.

The elderly, for example, fear crime the most, especially violent crime, although they are the least likely to become victims (the most dangerous age of all is under one year old with 28 homicide victims per million babies).

According to an international survey published in 1991, Britain’s crime rate is lower than the European average and lower than in Holland, Germany, Canada and Australia. About 18 per cent of Britons were victims of crime that year. In Canada 28 per cent experienced a crime, in Holland 26 per cent and in Germany 22 per cent. At the other end of the scale were Switzerland (15.6%) and Finland (15.9%) with low overall victim rates. The US appeared to live up to its reputation for lawlessness overall², with 28.8 per cent of the population having been a victim of a crime.

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¹to claim /kleIm/ - заявлять

²overall /"qVvqr'Ll/ – общий, предельный, всеобщий

Task 25. Find the English equivalents for the following words and word-combinations; memorize them.

1. причиной этого является

2. в среднем

3. нападение с причинением тяжкого телесного повреждения

4. зарегистрированные преступления

5. насильственное преступление

6. значительно вырасти

7. уровень преступности

8. потерпевший от преступления

9. жертва убийства

10. репутация всеобщего беззакония

Task 26. Answer the following questions.

1. What is the situation with crime in Great Britain?

2. What is the reason for not having the exact figures of committed crimes?

3. What makes the government committee claim that fear of crime is as great a problem as crime itself?

4. The people of what age are the most likely to become homicide victims?

5. What is the crime rate in other European countries?

6. What country has the reputation for lawlessness overall? Why?