ON JUNE 10th thieves in Stevenage ram-raided an electrical-goods store. The next day, a woman in north London was left in a critical condition after a mugging by two men on a moped. The day after that, a young man was stabbed outside a Tesco in west London—the second knife attack in the capital in barely 24 hours.

Such events are becoming more common. While crime overall continues to fall, some violent crimes—which tend to drive public opinion—seem to be on the rise. As a result, law and order is back on the political agenda for the first time in nearly a decade. Britons care about crime more than any other topic bar health and Brexit, according to Ipsos MORI, a pollster. The number saying it is a concern is now the highest in seven years (see chart).

When it comes to crime, public opinion eventually leads to political reaction, argues Lisa Miller, an academic at Rutgers University. Should the spree continue, MPs will once again face pressure for action. The Conservatives will not relish this prospect. Traditionally, they have prided themselves as the party of law and order. But the government has not played the topic well in recent years. Relations with the police have been uneasy. Theresa May picked fights with the police during her time as home secretary, accusing them of abusing stop-and-search laws. A simultaneous squeeze on police pay and benefits made for a toxic atmosphere.

One of the first tasks facing Sajid Javid, the new home secretary, is improving the Conservatives’ reputation among coppers. That his brother is a policeman helps. Mr Javid has also raised the possibility of small increases in spending, paid for by increases in council taxes. Although he has pledged that police funding will be his priority in the next spending review, he has not made high-profile pleas for cash.