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Pirates: Kenya

Question

Asked by Lord Tebbit

To ask Her Majesty's Government what maximum penalty the suspected pirates captured by HMS “Cumberland” on 11 November and transferred to Kenyan police custody on 18 November may face under Kenyan law; and whether this was considered before transferring the suspects to the Kenyan police. [HL472]

The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Malloch-Brown): The alleged pirates captured by HMS “Cumberland” on 11 November and transferred to Kenyan jurisdiction have been charged with piracy.

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Under Kenyan law this carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. When deciding whether the alleged pirates could be transferred to Kenyan custody, consideration was given as to whether the death penalty applied to piracy under Kenyan law, which it does not.

Police: Databases

Question

Asked by Lord Judd

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many separate databases are used by police in the United Kingdom in their anti-crime, anti-serious crime and anti-terrorist work; and what steps are being taken to streamline and rationalise the availability and accessibility of intelligence for Special Branch operatives. [HL468]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): Details of the databases used by the police, including Special Branch, in the United Kingdom, are not held centrally.

Streamlining and rationalising existing police intelligence databases will form part of the strategy for the police use of information and communications technology over the next 10 years.

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Prostitution

Questions

Asked by Lord Faulkner of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prosecutions and how many convictions there have been under Section 30 (man living on earnings of prostitution) and Section 31 (woman exercising control over prostitute) of the Sexual Offences Act 1956, or their replacement provisions in the Sexual Offences Act 2003, in each of the past 10 years. [HL71]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): The information requested can be viewed in the attached table.

These data are on the principal-offence basis. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and found guilty at all courts for offences relating to prostitution, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2007 (1)(2)(3)
		Proceeded against
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 30,Sec 31	Man living on earnings of prostitute or exercising control over prostitute. Woman for purpose of gain, exercising control over prostitute	50	48	35	34	47	41	42	5	1	1

		Found guilty
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 30,Sec 31	Man living on earnings of prostitute or exercising control over prostitute. Woman for purpose of gain, exercising control over prostitute	42	37	25	31	23	30	36	18	2	2

— Nil

(1) These data are on the principal offence basis.

(2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

(3) Staffordshire Police Force was only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates' courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.

Source: OCJR—E&A: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Evidence & Analysis Unit

Our ref: IOS 598-08 (Table) [Contribution for PQs HL71 to HL75]

Asked by Lord Faulkner of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prosecutions and how many convictions there have been under Section 52 (causing or inciting prostitution for gain) or Section 53 (controlling prostitution for gain) of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each of the past five years. [HL72]

Lord West of Spithead: The information requested can be viewed in the attached table.

These data are on the principal-offence basis. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest

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penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

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The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences relating to prostitution, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2007 (1) (2) (3)
		Proceeded against
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.52	Causing or inciting prostitution for gain	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2	1
Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.53	Controlling a prostitute for gain	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	12	18	23
Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	1	12	20	24

		Found guilty
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.52	Causing or inciting prostitution for gain	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	1	2	1
Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.53	Controlling a prostitute for gain	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3	11	24
Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4	13	25

— Nil

(1) These data are on the principal offence basis.

(2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

(3) Staffordshire Police Force was only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates' courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.

Source: OCJR—E&A: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Evidence & Analysis Unit

Our ref: IOS 598-08 (Table) [Contribution for PQs HL71 to HL75]

Asked by Lord Faulkner of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prosecutions and how many convictions there have been under Section 33 (keeping a brothel) of the Sexual Offences Act 1956 in each of the past 10 years. [HL73]

Lord West of Spithead: The information requested can be viewed in the attached table.

These data are on the principal offence basis. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

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The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences relating to prostitution, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2007 (1) (2) (3)
		Proceeded against
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 1956 S.33A as added by Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.55	Keeping a brothel used for prostitution	—	—	—	—	—	—	3	11	39	41
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 33.	Keeping a brothel	20	44	19	12	14	11	26	13	34	37
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 33 as amended by Sexual Offences Act 1967 Sec 6.	Keeping a brothel for homosexual practices	—	2	—	—	1	—	—	—	2	—
Total		20	46	19	12	15	11	29	24	75	78

		Found guilty
Statute	Offence description	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Sexual Offences Act 1956 S.33A as added by Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.55	Keeping a brothel used for prostitution	—	—	—	—	—	—	4	8	27	29
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 33.	Keeping a brothel	12	29	13	6	7	4	15	11	12	31
Sexual Offences Act 1956 Sec 33 as amended by Sexual Offences Act 1967 Sec 6.	Keeping a brothel for homosexual practices	—	—	—	—	1	—	—	—	2	—
Total		12	29	13	6	8	4	19	19	41	60

— Nil

(1) These data are on the principal offence basis.

(2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

(3) Staffordshire Police Force was only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates' courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.

Source: OCJR—E&A: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Evidence & Analysis Unit

Our ref: IOS 598-08 (Table) [Contribution for PQs HL71 to HL75]

Asked by Lord Faulkner of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prosecutions and how many convictions there have been for loitering and soliciting under Section 1 of the Street Offences Act 1959 in each of the past 10 years. [HL74]

Lord West of Spithead: The information requested can be viewed in the attached table.

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