Abstract
An analysis of annual, quarterly, and monthly data for recordes crime in England and Walwa yielded strong evidence that temperature has a positive effect on most types of property and violent crime. The effect was independent of seasonal variation. No relationship between crime and rainfall or hours of sunshine emerged in the study. The main explanation advanced is that in England and Wales higher temperatures cause people to spend more time outside the home. Time spend outside the home, in line with routine activity explanations for crime, has been shown to increase the risk of criminal victimization for most types of crime.