Figures out last week show more than 350 knife crimes committed every day in England and Wales. But in 2006/7 a gun crime was also committed every hour, with the total number of gun crimes (excluding air weapons) up 85% since 1998/9.
Violent crime is especially rife in London, particularly youth and gang related violent crime. 27 teenagers were murdered in London in 2007, the vast majority of victims of knife or gun crime. By Saturday 21 more had been killed so far this year. It is quite right that London's new Mayor has made this a top priority.
We might expect violent crime to be essentially an urban problem - but figures show alarming numbers of knife crimes in some rural forces such as Devon and Cornwall which recorded 288 offences last year.
But here in Shropshire we can be grateful that we live in one of the safest parts of the country. Crime in West Mercia has fallen to its lowest level for five years with significant reductions even in violent crime.
A Conservative government would look to build on this success, focussing on freeing police from deskwork, boosting neighbourhood policing, working with families, schools and businesses to prevent crime and introducing a citizen service for young people. On the front line this would mean cutting bureaucracy and putting more police officers on the streets.
Fighting crime requires constant vigilance and improvement. Forces like West Mercia have shown what can be done, with limited resources, to keep crime down.
