To reduce rising crime rates, Canada needs to invest more in social services

The Crime Severity Index is calculated like a crime rate, but different crimes are given a different weight, or importance, based on their severity. (Shutterstock)

Every summer, Statistics Canada releases crime rate and crime severity data for the previous year. This year, Canada’s Crime Severity Index (CSI) increased by 4.3 per cent, the violent CSI increased by 4.6 per cent, and the non-violent CSI increased by 4.1 per cent. Moreover, aside from a drop during the COVID-19 pandemic, these indices have been on the rise since 2014.