HC Deb 30 June 1977 vol 934 cc286-7W
Mr. Knox

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons under 18 years of age were convicted of vandalism in the past three years.

Mr. John

There is no specific offence of vandalism. Those committing acts of vandalism are normally prosecuted under the Criminal Damage Act 1971. Information is readily available only for those aged under 17 years. The following table shows the number of persons aged under 17 found guilty of offences of criminal damage.

PERSONS UNDER 17 FOUND GUILTY OF OFFENCES OF MALICIOUS DAMAGE AND CRIMINAL DAMAGE—ALL COURTS
ENGLAND AND WALES
Number of Persons
1973 … … … … 9,678
1974 … … … … 10,133
1975 … … … … 9,399

Figures for 1976 are not yet available.

Mr. Knox

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his estimate of the cost of vandalism during each of the past five years.

Dr. Summerskill

The information upon which reliable estimates could be based is not available. From such information as it was able to collect, the working party of the Home Office Standing Committee on Crime Prevention reported in 1975 that the annual cost of wilful and unnecessary damage must run into tens of millions of pounds; it could be as high as £100 million.