Half of all robberies and thefts taking place in England and Wales happened in London, Office for National Statistics figures revealed.

Across the countries, there was a 30 percent surge in robberies resulting in 77,103 offences in the 12 months to March 2018 of which 42 percent took place in London, according to the ONS.

Thefts in London also accounted for nearly half (48 percent) of all thefts in England and Wales.

The statistics office counts these two kinds of crimes separately, where robbery is defined as where a criminal steals from someone using force or the threat of force (i.e., a muggling). ‘Theft’ is where a criminal steals property while the property is being held or carried by the victim, but unlike robbery, these offences do not involve violence or threats to the victim.

The report noted the “disproportionately high” concentration of crimes in London which accounts for nearly one fifth (17 percent) of all recorded crimes.

Breitbart London reported Thursday that across England and Wales, there was a 16 percent increase in knife crime, 12 percent rise in homicide, and a staggering 31 percent increase in reported rapes.

England Knife, Gun, Rape Attacks and Homicide Continue Rapid Rise https://t.co/gcRvDuqsor — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 19, 2018

The spike in crime comes following London’s police force and others across the country prioritising hate crime — perceived slights due to a person’s characteristics such as race, religion, or sexual orientation.

London’s leftist Mayor Sadiq Khan has placed particular emphasis on fighting hate crime, investing £1.7 million on an online hate crime hub, with the London force boasting over 900 police officers “dedicated to investigating” it.

Following a Freedom of Information request by The Times, it was revealed that London’s Metropolitan Police had dropped investigations into thousands of lower-level offences and ignores certain crimes such as vandalism, vehicle crime, and fuel theft if damages do not exceed £50.

The Met’s “crime assessment policy”, which came into force in September 2017, also advised dropping crime investigations if it required officers to watch more than 20 minutes’ CCTV footage or if there is no footage available.

Though the policy notes serious crimes, such as homicides and sexual assaults, would always be investigated, it mandated that hate crime must also always be dealt with.

Also on Thursday, the police watchdog released figures saying that half of forces’ responses to hate crimes were “inadequate”, advising that police must “prioritise the service to victims” of hate crime.

Brexit Will Trigger Spike in Hate Crimes, Claims Police Watchdog https://t.co/Zhxl6EQIEb — Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 19, 2018