- In or about 2006, there were about 60 million people in the UK as a whole, including Scotland.
- In England and Wales alone — discounting Scotland — there were over 163 thousand knife crimes.
- By the end of 2006, there were more than 300 million people in the US as a whole.
- In the US as a whole, there were fewer than 400 thousand gun crimes.
- In the UK, based on these numbers, there was one knife crime commited for every 374 people (rounded down).
- In the US, based on these numbers, there was one gun crime committed for every 750 people — less than half a gun crime per 374 people (about 0.4987 gun crimes per 374 people, actually).
- That means that, based on these statistics, you are more than twice as likely to be a victim of knife crime in the UK as you are to be a victim of gun crime in the US.
Statistical Sources:
UK knife crime statistics
Bureau of Justice Statistics: Crimes Committed with Firearms
RDS Crime in England and Wales 2006/2007
National Statistics Online: UK Population (England, Scotland, and Wales, excluding outlying islands)
Demographics of the United States
United States Crime Rates 1960-2007