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29 Jun 2006 : Column 660W—continued

Violent Deaths

Mr. Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been killed in England and Wales in each year since 1990 by the use of (a) a knife, (b) a gun and (c) another weapon. [78337]

Mr. Coaker: The available information relates to offences currently recorded as homicide that were caused by (a) a sharp instrument, which includes other sharp instruments as well as knives, (b) shooting, which includes crossbows as well as guns, and (c) all other methods.

Data on apparent method of killing are released annually in a Supplementary Volume to the ‘Crime in England and Wales’ publication. Information for the period 1990 to 2004-05 are given in the following tables.

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29 Jun 2006 : Column 662W

Offences currently( 1) recorded as homicide by apparent method of killing and sex of victim: England and Wales, 1990 to 2004-05( 2)
Number
Apparent method	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997
Sharp instrument	178	217	218	182	231	243	197	200
Blunt instrument	74	62	50	66	55	78	68	71
Hitting, kicking, etc.	94	116	117	97	94	106	81	99
Strangulation(3)	81	94	79	89	104	83	77	64
Shooting(4)	59	50	52	71	63	66	47	58
Explosion	2	1	4	3	—	1	2	1
Burning	28	33	21	14	39	33	24	29
Drowning(5)	4	8	14	6	13	3	9	7
Poison or drugs(6)	9	19	11	9	17	16	28	17
Motor vehicle(7)	12	13	9	9	5	6	2	12
Other	7	8	4	14	4	19	44	37
Not known	7	2	2	5	7	9	6	14
Total	555	623	581	565	632	663	585	609

Number
Apparent method	1997-98	1998-99	1999-2000	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04	2004-05
Sharp instrument	202	201	212	214	261	266	234	236
Blunt instrument	68	65	70	76	60	47	68	61
Hitting, kicking, etc.	103	89	94	102	146	147	133	124
Strangulation(3)	61	78	56	148	77	64	67	60
Shooting(4)	52	46	61	72	97	75	69	77
Explosion	1	2	4	—	1	4	—	2
Burning	28	32	13	18	29	22	30	34
Drowning(5)	6	6	6	9	12	6	24	14
Poison or drugs(6)	17	47	53	32	33	201	22	30
Motor vehicle(7)	13	14	11	18	20	21	22	20
Other	38	43	41	68	37	51	47	45
Not known	19	23	53	14	31	49	77	117
Total	608	646	674	771	804	953	793	820
(1) As at 28 November 2005; figures are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. (2) Data taken from Home Office publications: 1994 to 2004-05 from HOSB 02/06; 1993 from HOSB 02/05; 1992 from HOSB 01/04; 1991 from HOSB 01/03; 1990 from CM 5312. (3) Including asphyxiation. Year 2000-01 includes 58 Chinese nationals who collectively suffocated in a lorry en route into the UK. (4) These figures may not agree with those in the firearms chapter because (a) figures include cases where the firearm was used as a blunt instrument and (b) homicide figures include shooting by crossbows and are compiled at a later date and take into account the results of police and court decisions. (5) Year 2003-04 includes 20 cockle pickers who drowned in Morecambe Bay. (6 )Year 2002-03 includes 172 victims of Dr. Harold Shipman. (7) Excluding death by careless/dangerous driving and aggravated vehicle taking.

War Criminals

Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which convicted war criminals are serving sentences in the UK; how long a sentence each is serving; and where each is held. [80994]

Joan Ryan: There are two prisoners currently serving sentences of imprisonment in the UK for crimes falling within this description. Radislav Krstic is serving a 35 year sentence for crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia. The prisoner was transferred to the UK in 2004 in accordance with the Sentence Enforcement Agreement between the UK and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Farayadi Sawar Zardad, serving a sentence of 20 years, was convicted in the UK of crimes committed in Afghanistan. It would be inappropriate for operational reasons to disclose the prisons in which they are held.

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