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8 Jan 2004 : Column 448W—continued
Fear of Crime
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the level of public fear of crime. [146272]
Ms Blears: The latest published statistics from the British Crime Survey, the quarterly update to June 2003, report that levels of fear of crime in the key categories of burglary, vehicle and violent crime have fallen, compared to June 2002. 14 per cent. of adults had high levels of worry about burglary (compared with 15 per cent. in June 2002), 16 per cent. had high levels of worry about vehicle crime (compared with 18 per cent.) and 20 per cent. had high levels of worry about violent crime (compared with 21 per cent.).
Firearm Offences
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the change in the number of firearm offences since March 2001. [146267]
Caroline Flint: Home Office figures indicate that, in 2001–02, firearms offences (excluding those involving air weapons) increased by 35 per cent. from the previous year. Provisional figures released on 16 October 2003
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show a total number of firearms offences in England and Wales in 2002–03 (excluding air weapons) was around 10,250 or around 3 per cent. higher than in 2001–02.
The overall level of firearms offences as a proportion of all recorded crime remains steady, at less than half of one 1 per cent.
In 2001–02, there were 95 recorded incidents in which injury following a firearms offence proved fatal. Provisional figures show that this figure fell by 16 per cent. in 2002–03. Final figures for 2002–03 will be published soon.
This remains an appalling loss of life on our streets and in our communities and we are continuing a programme of action covering community engagement, enforcement, legislation and tackling the links to drug supply and crime to deal with it.
Graffiti
Ann Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to reduce the level of graffiti. [146320]
Ms Blears: The Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 introduces a package of measures to prevent graffiti and to ensure that it is removed swiftly when it does occur.
The Act will give local authorities new powers to clean graffiti from certain types of property, including cable boxes, post boxes, phone booths, and property associated with public transport. It will also contain proposals to restrict the sale of spray paints to under 16s
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and give Local Authorities the power to issue Fixed Penalty Notices for graffiti. This means offenders will have to pay a £50 penalty or be prosecuted through the courts.
In November we launched the Name that Tag poster campaign which offers a £500 reward for information about targeted prolific taggers. This campaign is a partnership between the Home Office, Crimestoppers, Network Rail London Underground and British Transport Police and runs in London, Liverpool and Manchester.
Juvenile Offenders
Mr. Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) crimes were committed by, and (b) cautions were issued to, juvenile offenders in (i) St Helens, (ii) Merseyside and (iii) the North West in each year since 1992. [144323]
Paul Goggins: The table gives the number of juveniles convicted of all offences in St. Helens, Merseyside and the North West Region, 1992 to 2002. It also shows those given cautions (reprimands and final warnings from June 2000) in Merseyside and the North West during this period.
The information collected centrally does not enable cautions in St. Helens to be separately identified. Neither is it possible to give the number of crimes committed by juveniles, only the number of juveniles who are found guilty of all offences.
Statistics for 2003 will be published in the Autumn of 2004.
| 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Helens | ||||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 270 | 216 | 240 | 219 | 227 | 227 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— |
| Merseyside police force area (including St. Helens) | ||||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 2,510 | 2,112 | 2,260 | 2,478 | 2,889 | 2,789 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | 4,602 | 3,748 | 3,209 | 2,495 | 2,693 | 3,569 |
| North West region (including Merseyside)(2) | ||||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 11,912 | 9,784 | 10,810 | 19,461 | 12,644 | 13,127 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | 22,676 | 19,110 | 11,635 | 17,708 | 18,446 | 16,581 |
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Helens | |||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 224 | 373 | 373 | 408 | 346 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— | (3)— |
| Merseyside police force area (including St. Helens) | |||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 2,780 | 2,613 | 3,096 | 3,142 | 3,029 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | 3,909 | 3,554 | 2,177 | 1,498 | 1,793 |
| North West region (including Merseyside)(2) | |||||
| Persons aged 10–17 found guilty | 13,866 | 14,389 | 16,032 | 16,455 | 16,209 |
| Persons aged 10–17 receiving a caution(1) | 19,026 | 16,328 | 12,501 | 11,966 | 9,750 |
(1) Cautions for persons under 18 were replaced by reprimands and final warnings from June 2000.
(2) Includes police force areas of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside.
(3) not available.
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Motor Vehicle Theft
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) thefts of motor vehicles and (b) thefts from motor vehicles occurred in each of the last five years; and what proportion of each were committed after a window was broken. [145533]
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Ms Blears: Estimates from British Crime Surveys (BCS) are set out in the table. In 1998 and 2000 BCS respondents were asked about their experiences of crime in the previous calendar year. Following a change in the BCS sample design, from 2001–02 onwards respondents were asked about their experiences of crime in the 12 months prior to the interview.
| 1998 | 2000 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total thefts of /thefts from motor vehicle (Number) | 2,527,000 | 2,135,000 | 1,806,000 | 1,703,000 |
| Of which: | ||||
| Thefts of a motor vehicle (Number) | 370,000 | 328,000 | 315,000 | 278,000 |
| Offender broke window/tried to (Percentage) | 16 | 13 | 17 | Not yet available |
| Thefts from a motor vehicle (Number) | 2,157,000 | 1,807,000 | 1,491,000 | 1,425,000 |
| Offender broke window/tried to (Percentage) | 49 | 47 | 45 | Not yet available |
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will include in the next edition of the booklet "Steer Clear of Car Crime" a reference to the retro-fitting of security film to motor vehicle windows; [145534]
- (2) pursuant to his answer of 3 December 2003, Official Report, column 71W, on vehicle crime, whether the retro-fitting of security film to motor vehicle windows is recognised by his Department as a means of improving vehicle permitted security. [145616]
Ms Blears: We recognise that the retro-fitting of security film to motor vehicle windows has the potential to improve vehicle perimeter security. We will raise motorists' awareness of security film through Government publicity material, including the booklet "Steer Clear of Car Crime", when we are satisfied that products are available that meet Home Office attack resistance requirements and the appropriate standards set out in the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, Directive 92/22/EEC and UN/ECE Regulation 43 to ensure safety and durability.
Police
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment has been made of the response of the police to the Getting the Best Leaders to Take on the Most Demanding Challenges project. [146276]
Ms Blears: An extensive consultation exercise was undertaken on the key findings contained in the project on "Getting the Best Leaders to Take on the Most Demanding Challenges". A number of regional seminars were held to discuss the key findings with those who would be most affected by any new policies arising from the project report. Approximately 320 people, representing the broad spectrum of .the police service attended the seminars and over 100 written responses were also received. The results of the consultation exercise were considered by the Police Leadership Development Board (PLDB) on which all the major stakeholders, including all the police associations and the Association of Police Authorities are represented.
These responses and the views of the PLDB informed the advice given to Ministers and subsequent decisions on the future direction of policy.
As a result we are taking forward a number of measures to improve the identification, selection, support and development of those with the potential to be chief officers, including establishing a central advisory service which will be an embryonic form of a new body, the Police Leadership Centre, which will bring together all central work on police leadership within the remit of one organisation.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the pay and conditions package for the police implemented from 1 April 2003. [146277]
Ms Blears: The package provides improved and modernised pay and conditions of service for the police. It has a number of elements that are important for the wider police reform agenda including modernising the pay system, enabling greater flexibility and targeting rewards for priority work. I am pleased that all parties to the Police Negotiating Board agreement that led to the package are now working to ensure its effective implementation.
Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list, for each police force in England and Wales, the total number of (a) male and (b) female police officers in post for each of the last 10 years; [142057]
- (2) if he will list, for each police force in England and Wales, the total number of (a) male and (b) female (i) CID and (ii) non-CID officers in post at each rank, for each of the last 10 years. [142058]
Ms Blears [holding answer 16 December 2003]: Available information covers the period 1996 to 2003 for gender and rank. In 2003 new calculations for counting police numbers were introduced so the figures are not comparable with previous years.
A copy of the statistics have been placed in the Library.
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