A Cumbrian MP has slammed the Government after new figures revealed a shocking rise in the number of burglaries that go on unsolved in the county.

Tim Farron, MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale has blasted the government for new analysis which has revealed 60% of burglaries went unsolved in Cumbria in the past financial year, an average of three a day.

Figures from the Home Office show there were 948 burglaries were closed in Cumbria without a suspect being identified in 2022/2023.

Across England Wales, nearly 77% of all burglaries went unsolved in that same time period.  

The Liberal Democrats are calling for a return to proper community policing, where officers are trusted and visible in their neighbourhoods, with the time and resources to focus on tackling local crimes like burglaries.

The party is also calling for a new ‘Burglary Response Guarantee’ under which all domestic burglaries would be attended by the police and properly investigated.

They say that since 2015, the Conservatives have taken over 4,000 Police Community Officers off the streets. They say, as of last year, just 12% of officers across England and Wales were assigned to frontline neighbourhood policing teams.

Mr Farron said: “Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their own homes. But under this terrible Government, so many burglars are getting off scot-free. These figures will bring little comfort to families and pensioners in Cumbria.

“It’s a disgrace that our local communities are paying the price for the Conservative Government’s failures to get tough on burglaries.

“The Conservatives must finally bring back proper community policing and back the Liberal Democrats Burglary Response Guarantee, so all burglaries are attended by the police. It’s the only way to reverse these shocking figures.”