§ 10 and 11. Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what suggestions he has received from police in the Metropolitan area regarding the installation of burglar alarms; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what plans he has to introduce standards of approval regarding the manufacturing and marketing of burglar alarms.
§ Mr. Elystan MorganThe answer to each is "None, Sir"; but I understand that the British Standards Institution is preparing a standard for silent and audible alarms and the Home Office Standing Committee on Crime Prevention has also arranged for a study to be made of intruder alarms. The Metropolitan police are taking part in these studies, and full-time crime prevention officers in the force are available to advise users of alarms.
§ Mr. EadieWould not my hon. Friend agree that his reply gives the impression that he is treating the matter a little lightheartedly? When he replied to a previous Question which I put to him, he said that in the Metropolitan area alone in two months there were about 10,500 false calls. Does not that show that the matter should be dealt with with a little more expedition than I gather is the case from what my hon. Friend said?
§ Mr. MorganI agree that inevitably a high percentage of these alarm calls are false. I remind my hon. Friend that for more than four years the British Standards Institution has been working on intruder alarms in buildings. On 21st May of this year a B.S.I. technical committee, on which the police are represented, is expected to approve for publication a standard dealing with various matters.