Each year, the crime rate increases.

What are the causes of crime and what could be done to prevent this rise in
criminal activity?

Model answer

Crime is an issue of increasing concern around the world, and more money
than ever before is being spent on the detection and punishment of criminal
activity. The reasons why people commit crime are countless, but drugs and
alcohol, social problems and poverty play a major role. To solve these
problems, governments can either focus on draconian punishments, or
improve employment opportunities, invest in good housing projects and tackle
drug and alcohol abuse.

One of the main causes of criminality is the use, sale and trafficking of
narcotics. For example, the sale of drugs is organised by armed criminal gangs
who illegally traffic drugs and control their business with extreme violence.
Drug-related crime does not end there; drug users often steal to fund their
habit, resulting in further acts of petty crime. The social problems connected
with crime are said to be the result of single-parent families, absent role
models and bad living conditions. The children from these broken families
often become criminals because they feel alienated from society. Poverty is
also a reason behind crime. When unskilled jobs pay so little and prices are so
high, it's easy to see why some turn to crime for an income.

Crime can, of course, be dealt with by toughening criminal laws and

introducing longer custodial sentences for persistent criminals, but some of
the best ways to deal with crime may be to deal with the social causes.
Increasing employment opportunities in poorer areas would improve living
standards, which would mean access to affordable housing and education.
Government funding for drug and alcohol rehabilitation programmes would
help reduce dependency on stimulants and the need for the criminal activity
that surrounds them.
In conclusion, crime is a major issue, but cracking down on offenders with a
harsh penal system is not the only way. These problems can be solved through
the government providing jobs and funding which should raise living standards
and dramatically reduce crime levels.

Crime rate
a measurement of the number of times something happens or exists
during a particular period

Local businesses are closing at a/the rate of three a year.

a high/low/rising rate of unemployment
the annual crime/divorce rate
His pulse rate dropped suddenly.
a high success/failure rate

Prevent
to stop somebody from doing something;
to stop something from happening

prevented accident
prevent a scandal
holding a licence

criminal
connected with or involving crime

criminal offences
behaviour
criminal damage (= the crime of damaging somebody’s property
deliberately)
criminal negligence (= the illegal act of somebody failing to do something
that they should do, with the result that somebody else is harmed)

connected to the laws that deal with crime

criminal law
criminal justice system
a criminal lawyer
criminal charges against somebody

activity
a thing that you do for interest or pleasure, or in order to achieve a
particular aim

leisure/outdoor/classroom activities
a wide variety of activities including
illegal/criminal activities

Issue
an important topic that people are discussing or arguing about

a key/sensitive/controversial issue
big issue
environmental issues
raise the issue of overtime
divided on this issue.
avoiding the issue
confuse the issue.

a problem or worry that somebody has with something

bothered about
making an issue of
has issues about
has some issues

concern
a feeling of worry, especially one that is shared by many people

growing concern
raised concerns
expressed concern
widespread concern
a matter of concern to
cause for concern.

Detection
the process of detecting something; the fact of being detected

crime prevention
crime detection
escape detection
vitally important.

avoid detection
evade detection

Detect
to discover or notice something, especially something that is not easy to see, hear, etc
detect disease

evade
to escape from somebody/something or avoid meeting somebody

evaded the press.

managed to evade capture.

to find a way of not doing something, especially something that legally or morally you should do

evade payment of taxes

evade all responsibility

to avoid dealing with or talking about

evading the issue

evade answering a question

avoid
to prevent something bad from happening

avoided accident
narrowly avoided defeat
avoid confusion

to keep away from somebody/something; to try not to do something

avoid the rush hour

avoiding getting down to work
avoid mentioning
.
punishment
an act or a way of punishing somebody

to inflict/impose/mete out punishment

punishment for murder
little evidence
harsher punishments
punishment should fit the crime
as a punishment

inflict

harsh
adultery
appalling
deliberately
sincerely
reform

Commit
commit a crime
to do something wrong or illegal

commit murder/adultery
appalling crimes
committed against

commit suicide
to kill yourself deliberately

to promise sincerely that you will definitely do something, keep to an agreement or arrangement, etc.
promise/say definitely

committed to reforming
settle the dispute peacefully

deter
lenient

Countless

major

Focus

Draconian

Tackle

abuse

criminality

Trafficking

narcotics

Organised

Armed

Illegally

traffic

Extreme

violence
Drug-related

Drug users

Petty

Single-parent

Broken families

Feel alienated from

Turn to crime

Dealt with

Toughen

Introduce

custodial

Persistent

living standards

Access to

Affordable

rehabilitation

programmes

dependency

stimulants

Major

Cracking down
offenders

Harsh

penal

Raise living standards

Dramatically

crime levels