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Police (Early Retirements)
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many early retirements were granted by police authorities in each of the last four years. [123108]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Police officers are entitled to retire with an ordinary police pension on completion of 25 years' pensionable service, subject to certain conditions. However, most police officers choose to retire on completion of 30 years' pensionable service, as this is when maximum pension benefits are accrued.
There are currently no provisions for early retirement from the police service with an actuarially reduced pension. However, officers may retire early on the ground that they are permanently disabled from performing the ordinary duties of a police officer and will receive an ill-health pension.
Tables which contain information on ill-health retirements for civilian and non-civilian employees from each police authority for the last four years for which such information is available have been placed in the Library.
Police Staff Numbers
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police officers and (b) civilian staff there were in each Metropolitan Police division on the most recent date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [123148]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The information requested is given in the table, provided by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
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Criminal Record Checks
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police forces failed to meet targets for processing criminal record checks under child protection targets in each of the last three years; how long checks took on average in each force in each year; and if he will make a statement. [123228]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Under arrangements agreed with the Home Office, police forces in England and Wales aim to reply to employers and other agencies within 10 days, unless inquiries need to be made of other forces--in which case the aim is to reply within three weeks. These targets are subject to the allocation of resources within each police force, which is the responsibility of the Chief Constable.
Available information in relation to the average time taken by forces in England and Wales to carry out checks under the terms of Home Office Circular 47/1993 in the three years to 31 March 1999 was shown in the reply which I gave to the hon. Member for Torridge and West Devon (Mr. Burnett) on 17 March 2000, Official Report, columns 371-74W.
Arrangements in Scotland and Northern Ireland are a matter for the respective Secretaries of State.
Police Numbers
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were per head of population in each police force and in
22 May 2000 : Column: 375W
total in (a) 1992, (b) 1997 and (c) on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [123147]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The information requested is set out in the table in the form of population per police officer. The additional funds we are making available over the next two years to recruit 5,000 more officers over and above those that forces would otherwise have recruited should improve on the 1999 ratios.
| Force | As at 31 March 1992 | As at 31 March 1997 | As at 30 September 1999 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avon and Somerset | 464 | 491 | 498 |
| Bedfordshire | 489 | 502 | 531 |
| Cambridgeshire | 536 | 540 | 566 |
| Cheshire | 516 | 479 | 481 |
| City of London | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Cleveland | 378 | 382 | 405 |
| Cumbria | 416 | 429 | 451 |
| Derbyshire | 551 | 537 | 550 |
| Devon and Cornwall | 523 | 538 | 545 |
| Dorset | 514 | 531 | 542 |
| Durham | 435 | 416 | 391 |
| Dyfed-Powys | 496 | 474 | 457 |
| Essex | 510 | 511 | 541 |
| Gloucestershire | 459 | 491 | 507 |
| Greater Manchester | 363 | 372 | 378 |
| Gwent | 443 | 447 | 442 |
| Hampshire | 531 | 508 | 519 |
| Hertfordshire | 497 | 491 | 499 |
| Humberside | 431 | 434 | 458 |
| Kent | 501 | 478 | 484 |
| Lancashire | 440 | 439 | 443 |
| Leicestershire | 483 | 476 | 465 |
| Lincolnshire | 496 | 515 | 561 |
| Merseyside | 312 | 336 | 346 |
| Metropolitan Police | 259 | 284 | 297 |
| Norfolk | 537 | 543 | 572 |
| Northamptonshire | 507 | 513 | 545 |
| Northumbria | 414 | 390 | 375 |
| North Wales | 486 | 479 | 470 |
| North Yorkshire | 516 | 549 | 573 |
| Nottinghamshire | 436 | 444 | 463 |
| South Wales | 415 | 414 | 415 |
| South Yorkshire | 430 | 413 | 412 |
| Staffordshire | 481 | 477 | 481 |
| Suffolk | 544 | 561 | 578 |
| Surrey | 450 | 479 | 457 |
| Sussex | 479 | 477 | 515 |
| Thames Valley | 523 | 559 | 560 |
| Warwickshire | 495 | 541 | 553 |
| West Mercia | 540 | 547 | 574 |
| West Midlands | 377 | 371 | 360 |
| West Yorkshire | 406 | 405 | 434 |
| Wiltshire | 471 | 514 | 527 |
| Total for England and Wales | 406 | 414 | 426 |
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police officers and (b) officers per head of population there were (i) per police force and (ii) in England and Wales on 31 March; and if he will make a statement. [123226]
Mr. Charles Clarke: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) on 15 May 2000, Official Report, columns 59-60W.
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Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the change in the total number of police officers was in Hertfordshire between (a) 1992 and 1997 and (b) 1997 and the latest date for which figures are available, taking into account border changes with the Metropolitan police. [123154]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The change in the total number of police officers available for ordinary duty in Hertfordshire Constabulary between 31 March 1992 and 31 March 1997 was an increase of 64, from 1,695 to 1,759.
The change from 31 March 1997 to 30 September 1999, the most recent date for which figures are available was an increase of one, from 1,759 to 1,760.
The boundary changes for the Metropolitan Police District came into effect on 1 April 2000. The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis informs me that 182 police officers have been seconded from the Metropolitan Police Service to Hertfordshire Constabulary for periods of up to two years.
The Commissioner also informs me that historical information on Metropolitan Police Divisional Staffing is unavailable.
Right to Silence
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has undertaken into the impact of the change to the right to silence made by the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 on the number of convictions; and if he will make a statement. [123138]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Home Office Research Study 199, "The right of silence: the impact of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994", which was published in March 2000, examined the practical impact of the provisions on the interviewing of suspects at the police station and on proceedings in court. The report found a significant reduction in the extent to which suspects rely on silence when questioned by the police. The report concludes that conviction rates do not appear to have been affected, but the provisions may have introduced efficiencies in the investigation and prosecution process, with more productive interviews; greater scope for the investigation of accounts provided by suspects during interviews; and greater certainty of convictions where silence augments an already sound prosecution case. A copy has been placed in the Library.
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