Statistics Canada recently released data from 2023 into crime and crime severity, and both points had some disturbing notes for rural Manitobans.
According to their latest report, the crime rate in rural parts of the province is worse than in urban areas, and the severity of those crimes is greater as well. Police reported crime that year was 65 percent higher in rural than in urban areas, while severity was 41 percent higher. Northern rural areas had higher rates of crime and severity than those in the south.
“The police-reported crime rate in the provinces and the Crime Severity Index (CSI) are consistently higher on a year-over-year basis in rural areas than in urban areas,” reads the report. “In 2023, the police-reported crime rate was 34% higher in rural areas than in urban areas.”
Stats Can reported that all types of violent crime except robbery were higher in rural areas than urban across the country, with Manitoba and Saskatchewan having the two most concerning rates on a per-capita basis. Crime and bail reform were hot-button issues in the federal election.
“We have seen too many horrible examples of repeat offenders destroying lives, committing violent, repeated crimes,” said Grant Jackson, MP for Brandon-Souris. “We need to make sure we are holding the Liberals to account. Mr. Carney avoided most of that discussion throughout the election campaign, but it is a serious issue.”
The full report, which you can read here, includes data on the ages of accused, intimate partner and family violence, and violence against women and girls.
