HL Deb 25 November 1952 vol 179 c517

2.41 p.m.

EARL HOWE

My Lords, I beg to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

[The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any figures exist which indicate the actual amount which violent crime is costing the country at present, and if so, how such figures compare with those for 1938.]

THE LORD CHANCELLOR (LORD SIMONDS)

My Lords, I regret that this information is not available. The material and financial cost of crimes of violence, to the victims and to the country as a whole, involves so many different factors that it is impossible to arrive at even an approximate estimate of the total.