Hey just wanted to put in what my experience of pick pocketing has been. When my parents were over, my mother caught some one pickpocketing her. Who was it? A gypsy, a moroccan..... no an older Spanish male, with what appeared to be his wife/ partner whatever. Luckily he was caught in the act and was so surprised by being given a slap by my mum that he dropped the wallet (which essentially contained nothing anyway) and scarpered. The rise in criminality is due to a great many factors. It is something that is being dealt with in a great many countries, and cannot be put down just to increases in illegal immigrants. what about increasing levels of juvenile delinquincy, drug taking,alcohol abuse?
Or are these problems only associated with immigrants as well?