Jacqui Smith, Labour’s Home Secretary has announced that every neighbourhood in England and Wales will have access to the latest local crime information through new interactive crime maps.

By the end of the year every police force area will produce crime maps which will allow the public to:

* see where and when crime has happened, down to street level for some crimes;
* make comparisons with other areas; and
* learn how crime is being tackled by their local neighbourhood policing team.

The new maps will give the public the information they need to hold their local police force to account – and let the public get involved in setting local policing priorities to reduce the crime that matters to them in their area.

Jacqui Smith said:

"The public are the best weapon for fighting crime. By rolling out up-to-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. This will help increase public confidence in the police and make communities safer.

"The latest annual crime figures showed another drop in crime nationwide but it's important that people understand what this means to them in their local area and where challenges remain.