October 13, 2022 – As reported violent crimes continue to tick upward across the country, Canadians have taken notice, and their concern about community crime rates has hit its highest point in a decade of Angus Reid tracking.
New data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds three-in-five Canadians (60%) believe there has been more crime in their community over the last five years. That sentiment is twice as common as it was in 2014, when three-in-ten (30%) believed crime was increasing where they lived.
Notably, while violent crime has risen since 2014, other forms of crime have remained stable, or even dropped precipitously.
As concern over crime climbs, confidence is low in some of the country’s key institutions of justice. A declining number of Canadians profess confidence in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Half (47%) say this, while as many do not (45%). As recently as 2014, two-thirds (67%) of Canadians said they had complete or a lot of confidence in that institution. Trust is even lower in the provincial criminal courts. More than half (55%) of Canadians say they do not trust the criminal courts in their home province.
However, a perception of increased crime around them stands in juxtaposition to Canadians’ own experiences. Despite widespread belief that crime is increasing, the number of Canadians reporting being a victim of a crime over the past two years has not changed. Indeed, this number is the same now as it was in 2018 (13%).
Over the past five years or so, would you say there has been an increase, decrease, or no change in the amount of crime in your community?
More Key Findings
Walking after dark
Three-quarters of Canadians (74%) say their neighbourhood is a safe place to walk alone after dark. This rises to 86 per cent among rural Canadians and drops to 72 per cent among urbanites. Winnipeg residents feel least safe – two-in-five (41%) say they do not feel comfortable walking alone at night. Overall, this represents a seven-point decline from 2015, when four-in-five (81%) Canadians said they felt safe walking alone after dark in their neighbourhood.
Confidence in RCMP
Three-in-five (57%) respondents who identify as Indigenous say they do not have confidence in the RCMP. Half (48%) of those who identify as visible minorities, and more than two-in-five (43%) non-visible minorities say the same.
Local police
Confidence in local police detachments is much higher among those over the age of 54 (62%) than those aged 18- to 34-years-old (39%).
Survey Methodology
The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from Sept. 19-22, 2022 among a representative randomized sample of 5,014 Canadian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum. For comparison purposes only, a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding. The survey was self-commissioned and paid for by ARI.
For detailed results by age, gender, region, education, and other demographics, click here.
To read the full report, including detailed tables and methodology, click here.
To read the questionnaire in English and French, click here.
Image – Unsplash Scott Rodgerson
From the Angus Reid Institute, Canada’s non-profit foundation committed to independent research.
For detailed breakdown of the results, visit angusreid.org