19 June 2012 Last updated at 11:22 ET

Crimes in Scotland rose during mild winter, new figures indicate

The Scottish government believes a milder winter contributed to a rise in crime

Mild winter weather is thought to have contributed to a rise in crime in Scotland between October and March.

Statistics showed that there was a 6% increase in the number of reports submitted by police to prosecutors.

There were also rises in the number of offences dealt with directly by police or prosecutors fiscal.

But the Scottish government said the increase happened because last winter was very mild compared to the previous year.

There is a long-held belief that crimes reduce during inclement weather and increase during clement conditions.

A spokesperson for the government said the overall trend in crime continued to be downwards.

The findings of the summary justice reform statistics, covering the period October 2011 to March 2012 included;

• 119,064 police reports were submitted compared with 111,971 between October 2010 and March 2011, an increase of 6%
• 24,696 police direct measures were issued compared with 22,353 between October 2010 and March 2011, an increase of 9%
• 62,252 cases were dealt with by direct measures by procurators fiscal compared with 53,505 between October 2010 and March 2011, an increase of over 16%
• the percentage of accused in summary criminal cases pleading guilty at first calling was 34%, compared with 33% between October 2010 and March 2011.