Crime rate in Victoria continues to fall, driven by drops in home invasions and youth offending

Victoria's crime rate has continued to fall, with new figures showing a 3.8 per cent decrease in the past year to June. Youth offending decreased by 8.1 per cent in that time, while serious and violent crimes dropped by 4 per cent.

Home invasions fell by 27 per cent, carjackings decreased by 25 per cent, and robberies dropped 22 per cent. Burglaries and break-ins were down by 20 per cent, which Crime Statistics Agency Chief Statistician Fiona Dowsley described as "really significant".

"Potentially there's been a bit of crime prevention that's influencing that. We certainly have quite a few people who are being remanded for those offences, so that can have a temporary effect," she said.

Dowsley noted that crime rates can fluctuate, saying "These things do have a certain amount of ebb and flow. We have seen a very big increase and we're now seeing a big decrease back down."

Police say organised crime, repeat offenders, mental health, and drugs are the main drivers of crime, with trafficking and dealing of certain drugs spiking by 18.5 per cent. Family violence offending decreased by 3 per cent across metropolitan Melbourne and Victoria's regions, with police attributing the fall to a record 16,500 family violence-related arrests.

Regional Operations Deputy Commissioner Bob Hill said the drop in the state's crime rate was promising, but more work still needed to be done to make Victorians feel safe.

"Our work is far from over," he said. "We remain firmly committed to reducing harm across the community and will continue striving not only to meet our targets, but to exceed them."

Victoria Police is still facing a retention crisis, with 1340 unfilled roles. The latest crime data comes after an auditor-general report found Victoria's $40 million flagship initiative to stop youth crime had failed to show it had driven down youth offending.

A report published today by Victoria's Sentencing Advisory Council found prison terms for major crimes such as murder, rape, and trafficking offences were getting longer.