Murders in the capital jumped from 99 to 113, most in the Metropolitan Police area, while in the rest of the South East totals rose from 11 to 18 in Kent, seven to 16 in Thames Valley, seven to 15 in Surrey, five to 13 in Sussex and 13 to 21 in Essex. The rises buck the trend of the last decade. Murders and manslaughters have dropped or remained static every year since 2004.