While everyone watches Trump's tariff battles reshape global trade, a quieter injustice unfolded in Britain. Crime victims saw their average compensation slashed by £58.40 in a single year, falling from £258.60 to just £200.20.

That's a 22.6% cut to the money paid to people who've already suffered enough. (Source: Ministry of Justice, Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly -- Outcomes-by-Offence-data-tool-2010-2016 -- 3. Compensation)

Think about what £58 means to someone whose laptop was stolen, whose car was vandalised, whose shop was robbed. It's not life-changing money, but it's real money. Money that helps replace what was taken, covers the taxi home after your phone was nicked, pays for the locksmith after a break-in.

Politicians love talking tough on crime. They promise justice for victims, announce new initiatives, pledge support. But when it came to actually putting money where their mouths were, they quietly did the opposite.

The timing matters. This wasn't some gradual decline or market fluctuation. This was 2016, when compensation averaged £200.20 compared to £258.60 the year before. A sharp, decisive cut that someone, somewhere, decided was acceptable.

While businesses worry about Trump's trade policies affecting their bottom lines, British crime victims already experienced their own version of economic punishment. The difference? They had no lobby, no trade association, no Supreme Court appeal. Just less money in their pockets when they needed it most.

You won't see compensation payments trending on social media or dominating the evening news. There's no dramatic press conference, no angry protests, no celebrity campaigns. Just thousands of victims getting less help, one case at a time, while the political machine moves on to louder, more visible fights.

Every crime creates ripples beyond the immediate harm. The psychological impact, the practical disruption, the financial burden. Compensation isn't meant to fix everything, but it's meant to acknowledge that society has failed someone and owes them something in return.

When that acknowledgement gets smaller, the message is clear: your suffering matters less than it did last year. Your inconvenience, your trauma, your loss carries less weight in the scales of justice.

Trump's tariffs might reshape international commerce. But Britain already reshaped something more fundamental: how much we think crime victims are worth.