JCSUPERMOTO

Excuse me...............If you throw figures back at me,please check yours very carefully
Cos on that wiki it was 5 years ago2004/05

I did state i brought a 1metre long map to stick on my wall with some facts and figures,so who knows when that was produced either

elfman

actually you're right - I was mixing my square kilometers and square miles

UK still isn't as crowded as some people like to claim it is though - I've lost count of the number of times I've heard "the UK is the second or third most crowded country in the world", when it doesn't even make the top 40

elfman

there are other sources which don't rely directly on police statistics that also say UK crime is falling - for example the British crime survey, which is based on people's experiences and is specifically designed to pick up "unreported" crime:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7511758.stm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Crime_Survey

Bevm

I don't think it's negative to point out to people that population per square mile needs to be per-habitable-mile to mean anything. People thinking of moving to Canada and Australia need to know that all that space doesn't mean anything if its empty for a reason, and that they could well end up living with hundreds of thousands of other people in the same density as in the UK.

That may not be a problem, but they need to know.

In fact, in most places in Canada the density in towns and cities is less, lots are bigger etc. But just not to that extreme. Don't know about Australia.

There's also the negative side. Some people, like me, don't want to live in a big house surrounded by private land. I think I've read some comments here from people who discovered they missed the way of life that comes from a denser population.

Bev

cricket1again

Thankyou for your good wishes. I tend to be happy in myself and it follows me wherever I go.

Arris

Sounds good when reading but in reality not so i'm afraid to say speaking from personal experience

cricket1again

I think the perception of crime is what varies.

People tend to live closer together in the UK and places are linked closer together by the network of motorways. This suggests that crime can happen quicker, be reported quicker and make the news headlines quicker giving a sense that it's happening all the time.

In Australia, people still live closer together, there is some degree of safety in this, i would not live out in the sticks here, whereas I was happy to in the UK. However, due to the geographical expanse of land size, places are much farther apart. This means crime, while still high, takes longer to happen, longer to notice that it's happened and by the time it's been reported, it's way down the list of what constitutes news headlines so it doesn't impact on the minds of the public in the same way that it does in the UK. This is why it's so helpful to hear good news about crime falling for a change.

Also police response times are very different. In the UK, the police are fairly quick to respond while here they depending on the crime, they may respond a day later or not at all. It's very different and it leaves people feeling very vulnerable to think that they are not protected.

I notice crime much more here than I ever did in the UK.

Sleeping_Beauty45

Sorry to disagree with you again but for anti social behaviour we may get a call out within a week, for very bad ASB I often get a call six or seven hours later asking if the kids are still there causing havoc - criminal damage I'm talking about them jumping all over cars, graffitti on walls, drinking, doing drugs in day light and so on - and for the record, I actually live in a very "nice" area!!

Last week I called the police 999 (first time ever) as a gang of 8 or so youths surrounded my husband and an elderly neighbour, I was crying and pleading with the controller to get a car out as they were verbally and physically - aggressive - because my husband and neighbour went out to clear up the rubbish from the bins they had knocked over (the pulled over every single bin on the estate). I was pleading really pleading for police assistance and nobody came out - well I saw a police van drive past about an hour and a half later but that could have been co-incidental.

The ONLY time the police have come out quickly is when they heard my husband arguing with these kids - and they came to warn him not to argue with them, not to protect our property and so on.

We can't even chuck a bucket of water over them if they climb our 8ft wall into our back garden.

I promise there is no exaggeration, this really is supposed to be a nice neighbourhood, expensive detached new build properties, our neighbours are doctors, solicitors and company directors.

Until a few years ago, I would never have believed that this could happen, especially not here where we are.

Grayling

I have never lived anywhere like that.

Perhaps you should avoid living in low life areas in future

Sleeping_Beauty45

Did you actually read what I wrote??

Grayling

Yes....you obviously live in a pretty poor area.

No one I know lives in a place like that.

maybe do a bit more research next time you buy a house

Sleeping_Beauty45

Ok and you are obviously a pratt, hey ho! I can move out of my "poor area" sadly you will keep yourself with you forever!

Grayling

Why have a go at me

You are the one who is complaining about the area you live in.

You may have trouble selling your house if it is that bad.....you should be more careful next time.

cricket1again

Was this a one off incident? If you're affected by anti social crime, it is a pain but it's not regarded as a priority. It's more that it's a nuisance which it is.
I live in a nice area but we still get gangs (they call them hoons here), lining up in cars before taking off around the streets chasing each other.
In a way, they are not doing much harm. It's late at night so they're using the streets as a race track to let off steam. But they cause a noise disturbance and it is infuriating at 3am in the morning but I take the view that if that's all they're doing, I'm not going to worry about it because there are far more serious things happening that need to take priority.

Here in Oz, people perhaps live in a more protected way than they do in the UK. Houses have security windows and doors, metal fencing and locking gates so it's harder to enter a property. Others live in apartments or gated complexes.
Even so, on some of the more upmarket gated areas, which look and sound impressive, break ins are very common because thieves believe there is something worth stealing so they plan a burgling mission.
Even on the waterfront residences, they get robbed frequently because thieves sneak in the back having got their by boat.

Honestly, I'm far more aware of crime happening here, mostly break ins, than I ever was at home. I lived on the outskirts of Northampton, which is a high crime area, in one of the villages, and I think once in 5 years, there was a drive through robbery where they drive through all the villages at night looking for opportunities but it happened very rarely.

stm1971

It does amaze me the amount of time that some of the so called "loving it" brigade spend on here.

You would think they would all be out there enjoying the "wonderful australian lifestyle".

It seems they have to justify their reason to be here but keep harping on about how great it is to strangers. At least it keeps us entertained. I wish I could be as witty as some of the replies you and others give them but my brain has been dulled after living in this place so long.