Vancouver police cite record-low crime severity in 2025 as candidates question release timing

New Vancouver Police Department data show the city’s overall Crime Severity Index (CSI) reached its lowest level since tracking began in 1998 last year. Police say Vancouver’s overall CSI fell 22.3 per cent over the past decade, while the national figure rose 4.2 per cent. The non-violent CSI also reached a record low in 2025. The index accounts for the seriousness of offences rather than treating every reported crime equally. Senior Deputy Chief Const. Howard Chow said at a news conference Thursday that Vancouver is safer now than it has ever been. The Vancouver Police Department says overall crime rates, property crime and violent crime rates declined from 2002 to 2025. It credits proactive policing, targeted enforcement and investment in technology and strategies, including Project Barrage and the creation of District 5. Both initiatives began last year, so they did not affect crime rates before then.

The long-term figures come as some crime categories have risen in 2026. CTV News previously reported that violent crime in Vancouver was up six per cent in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2025. The first quarter saw a 12.3 per cent year-over-year increase, followed by a smaller 1.4 per cent increase in the second quarter. Police say some less serious offences have moved in the wrong direction this year, while the most serious categories—including murder, attempted murder, sexual offences, commercial and residential break-and-enters, and auto theft—are decreasing. Police project all three CSI categories will reach their lowest recorded levels by the end of 2026.

The release came as Vancouver’s municipal election campaign entered its final stretch, prompting candidates to question why police chose to announce the long-term trends now. TEAM mayoral candidate Colleen Hardwick said the timing deserved scrutiny and questioned why the figures were being highlighted just days before the vote. Vancouver Liberals mayoral candidate Kareem Allam said police and other public institutions should remain impartial during an election campaign. “The role of the bureaucracy is to be impartial, particularly in the midst of an election year,” he said. Vote Vancouver mayoral candidate Rebecca Bligh also questioned the timing, saying voters were entitled to ask why the data was being released before election day. She has argued that public safety requires a broader response involving municipal, provincial and federal partners, rather than policing alone. Green mayoral candidate Pete Fry said Vancouver’s crime rates should be viewed in a broader context. “Crime rates have been trending down across North America,” he said. “It’s not just an anomaly here.” The candidates’ comments reflect differing views on the timing and interpretation of the data; the statistics themselves do not establish a political motive for the release.

Mayor Ken Sim’s ABC Party said the figures show Vancouver is moving in the right direction. In a statement, the party pointed to funding for 100 additional Vancouver Police Department officers, expanded mental-health response capacity and targeted enforcement initiatives, including Project Barrage and District 5. ABC said no single initiative can account for the long-term crime trends, but argued the results reinforce the importance of sustained investment and proactive policing. The Vancouver Police Union, which endorsed Sim in the 2022 election, has said it will not endorse a mayoral candidate in 2026.

Asked whether releasing the figures nine days before the election could be seen as an endorsement of Sim, Chow said he was concerned about how crime data had been portrayed in recent months. “What I’m concerned about is the fact of how our data over the last number of months have been misrepresented,” he said. Chow said the Vancouver Police Department wants the public to have a clearer picture of crime trends, including the distinction between long-term changes and increases in some categories this year. Vancouver’s municipal election is Oct. 17.