§ 2.50 p.m.
§ THE EARL OF SELBORNEMy Lords, I beg leave 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 they can estimate the approximate number of murders that have been committed since the Homicide Act, 1957, was passed, and whether they can give a similar estimate for the number of murders that occurred in the corresponding period before the passing of that Act.]
EARL BATHURSTMy Lords, in the first twelve months after the Homicide Act came into force on March 21, 1957, 151 murders became known to the police in England and Wales and in the second twelve months 127—a total of 278. The figures for the corresponding periods before the Act was passed were 129 in 1955–56 and 146 in 1956–57. That was a total of 275 for the two years. These figures exclude cases originally recorded as murder but later found not to be murder.
The figures for the periods before and after the passing of the Act are not strictly comparable because the Act changed the definition of murder. The principal change was the introduction of the special defence of diminished responsibility. There were 31 cases in 1957–58, and 20 cases in 1958–59 in respect of which persons charged with murder were then found guilty of manslaughter after pleading diminished responsibility. Most of these cases would probably have been regarded as murder before the Homicide Act was passed.
727 My Lords, I apologise for all those figures and dates but I am afraid that it would have been impossible to give the noble Earl the figures he requires or a fair picture without using them.
§ THE EARL OF SELBORNEMy Lords, may I thank the noble Earl for that very full Answer and for giving those figures, which I think are significant?
§ LORD MORRISON OF LAMBETHMy Lords, might I ask the noble Earl, it being rather difficult, as he admitted, to carry the figures in one's head while they are being read, whether we can take it that there has not been a material difference in the number of murders since the passing of the Homicide Act as compared with those in the corresponding period before?
EARL BATHURSTMy Lords, if the noble Lord opposite will do some addition he will see that there seems to be an increase in deaths—we can put it that way. But one cannot, apparently, compare murders from year to year; one needs a considerable time to be able to tell the trend in murders. And in the view of my right honourable friend the time has not yet elapsed to be able to judge the trend.