§ 13. Mr. Freemanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the current number of reported cases of vandalism compared with the previous 12-month reporting period and five years ago.
§ Mr. MellorIn the 12 months to the end of September last year, the latest period for which figures are available, the police in England and Wales recorded 486,000 cases of criminal damage compared with 432,000 in the preceding 12 months and 320,000 during 1979.
§ Mr. FreemanWhile acknowledging that significant increase in vandalism, may I ask whether my hon. Friend agrees that it is important to keep the first offender out of the criminal justice system, and is not one way of doing this to promote the use of juvenile liaison bureaux in local authorities throughout the country? Will he look favourably upon the development of one in my constituency?
§ Mr. MellorI cannot comment on my hon. Friend's last point, but I can assure him that it is part of our purpose, wherever possible, to keep juveniles out of the criminal justice system. For instance, a proposal has recently been published to ensure that cautioning procedures are put on a similar footing throughout the United Kingdom, and this will assist in the process that my hon. Friend wishes to continue.