There were more than 62,000 fewer victims of crime in London last year as overall crime fell to an eight year low, the fourth annual consecutive reduction.

Today's release of the Met's annual crime statistics, which monitor offences and detections in London from April 06 to March 07, also show that the number of crimes being detected has risen for the fifth year running to just over 21%, double what it was five years ago.

Crime involving violence, guns and knives are all down on last year. There were 15,400 fewer violent crime offences, which include 7.3% fewer Actual Bodily Harm cases; a 6.2% drop in Grievous Bodily Harm and common assault is down by 9.7%. Gun and knife-enabled crime and murders are at historically low levels with 432 fewer gun-enabled offences, 40 fewer Trident offences and 465 fewer knife offences.

Targeted activity to tackle robbery of personal items has stabilised previous years' increases and there were 21 fewer offences this year than last. All boroughs now have dedicated robbery cars for immediate response to incidents providing improved support for victims and the best opportunity for catching the culprits.

The robbery of business property increased by 17% although this represents a relatively low increase in the number of offences - 481 up on last year giving a total of 3,311 across London. The MPS is combating commercial crime with a range of measures including Operation Vanguard, which tackles cash in transit robberies.

Residential burglary is in long-term decline with a further 6.6% fall recorded this year (4,241 fewer offences). Total burglary, which includes both residential and commercial offences, is now at its lowest level since 1975.

All types of hate crime show reductions over the last twelve months. Domestic violence has fallen by 9.4%, racist crime by 11.9% and homophobic crime by 8.5%. The sanction detection rates for these crimes have increased significantly.

Commissioner Sir Ian Blair believes that the results reflect the sustained effort made across the organisation, a management culture focused on performance and the investment that has been made in the MPS in recent years. Sir Ian, said:

"Credit must be given to the Mayor and our Police Authority for their support and commitment and we are also grateful to both central government and the council taxpayers of London for providing the resources we need to do the job effectively.

"An important positive result for us this year is that gun and knife-enabled crime are down and murder numbers are stable. However, each of the worrying number of recent attacks involving young people is a tragedy and we are determined to do all we can to tackle these crimes and to work with others to find lasting solutions.

"Overall this year's annual performance statistics show that whilst there is still more to be done, the Met has made significant inroads against criminality in London and our challenge now is to build on this further."

Len Duvall, chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority, said:

"The MPA recognises the hard work the Met's officers and staff have put in to achieve these results and they deserve our thanks. But although we're moving in the right direction we've not taken our eye off the ball and realise that there is still more to do. Robbery figures, for instance, remain a concern and the Authority will be monitoring progress on a regular basis. And while these new figures indicate gun and knife murders are at an historic low, the recent tragic deaths of a number of young people clearly shows the need for the police to join with other agencies across the capital to tackle the issue strategically."

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