§ Mr. McManusasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many house searches have been carried out by the security forces in Fermanagh and South Tyrone in the last 12 months; and how many of these houses have been searched more than once, more than three times and more than six times.
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§ Mr. BlakerI have been asked to reply.
The information is not available in the form requested and it would require disproportionate effort to obtain it. The average number of occupied houses searched in the Province as a whole between 1st November 1972 and 31st October 1973 was just under 1,300 a month.
§ Mr. McManusasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what records of house searches are kept by the security forces.
§ Mr. BlakerI have been asked to reply.
A weekly total is kept centrally. A form is made out for each search. Two copies are handed to the householder and two copies are retained for use in the event of a claim being submitted through the civil authorities. In addition units keep a record of searches they conduct.
§ Mr. McManusasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he is aware that during house searches the security forces ask the religion of the occupants; and if he will issue instructions to the security forces not to ask that question.
§ Mr. BlakerI have been asked to reply.
It is not the general practice for the security forces to ask people their religion during house searches. In certain circumstances it is desirable for the security forces to know the religion of people in their area, since this information may be valuable in helping them to prevent disturbances of an inter-sectarian nature. However, even when questions are asked about a person's religion he is not obliged to answer.