"Many of those lessons learnt targeting burglary and car crime were used to good effect on violent crime too."
Home Office figures released on Tuesday showed that incidents of violent crime rose by 8% and robbery by 21% between October 1999 and September 2000.
But the rise in violent offences reported to the police forms an embarrassing backdrop for Labour in the run-up to an expected spring election.
Inner-city areas remained the worst for violence, robbery and burglary, according to the new statistics.
But burglary rates actually fell by 8% - the seventh consecutive drop - while thefts of vehicles fell 7% and thefts from vehicles fell 6%.
'Figures encouraging'
Home Secretary Jack Straw insisted the figures were encouraging and showed "the continuing success of effective action against crime".
"As a result of excellent work by the police, local councils, community groups and others, recorded crime fell over the 12-month period.
"Many of those lessons learnt targeting burglary and car crime were used to good effect on violent crime too."
The figures come just a week after Mr Straw unveiled an "action plan" to cut violent crime and pledged to boost police numbers to record levels within four years.
That aim was backed up with the announcement that police numbers, falling since 1993, increased by 444 from March to September last year.
A total of 5,200 recruits joined in 2000 compared to 3,000 the year before.
It also emerged the government will soon be announcing moves to make it more attractive for experienced officers to carry on working after 30 years of service.
Police colleges were "bulging" and they were looking at a "number" of other initiatives to increase police numbers, he went on.
Nonetheless they were "seriously concerned" about the violent crime figures.
The task now was to keep up the pressure on areas such as vehicle crime and burglary while delivering the same successes against muggings and alcohol-fuelled street crime, Mr O'Brien added.
On Friday the government's Police and Criminal Justice Bill will be published, including measures for fixed penalty notices to be issued to drunken yobs.
The Conservatives used the crime figures to renew previous attacks over the long term fall in police numbers.
Shadow home secretary Ann Widdecombe told the BBC: "The truth of the matter is that we left behind a fall in crime of 16%.
"We are being invited to rejoice that the overall fall in crime, according to the latest year, is 0.2%.
"That is actually flatlining at its most optimistic interpretation."
She said the "huge fall" in police numbers was mainly to blame, alongside courts having inadequate powers to deal with young offenders.
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Simon Hughes said: "I think the worrying thing, in a pattern which may otherwise not be so worrying, is the violent crime increase in the streets."
He backed the idea of asking experienced police officers to stay on and called for more sport and "constructive activity" for youngsters.
| Recorded crime figures by offence | |||
| Offence group | 12 months to Sept 1999 | 12 months to Sept 2000 | % change |
| Violence against the person | 551,157 | 588,846 | +6.8 |
| Sexual offences | 37,400 | 37,263 | -0.4 |
| Robbery | 74,835 | 90,410 | +20.8 |
| Total violent crime | 663,392 | 716,519 | +8.0 |
| Burglary | 935,343 | 862,671 | -7.8 |
| Total theft & handling stolen goods | 2,218,829 | 2,179,674 | -1.8 |
| Theft of and from vehicles | 1,071,788 | 1,000,317 | -6.7 |
| Fraud & forgery | 313,833 | 328,306 | +4.6 |
| Criminal damage | 908,651 | 953,979 | +5.0 |
| Total property crime | 4,376,656 | 4,324,630 | -1.2 |
| Drug offences | 129,670 | 115,492 | -10.9 |
| Other notifiable offences | 64,708 | 64,775 | +0.1 |
| Total all offences | 5,234,426 | 5,221,416 | -0.2 |
| Source: Home Office Notifiable offences recorded by the police by offence |
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