§ Sir John Farrasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many firearms and shotgun certificates have been cancelled by courts in England and Wales under convictions for deer poaching in the last five years;
(2) what forfeitures have been ordered by courts in England and Wales under convictions for deer poaching in each of the last five years;
(3) how many persons have been charged with, and how many convicted of, offences under the Deer Act 1980; and what was the total amount of the penalties imposed in each year since enactment.
§ Mr. MellorThe information readily available to me, which may be affected by variations in the completeness of recording, is given in the table. Corresponding information for 1985 is not yet available. No information is collected centrally on forfeitures or on cancellation of firearms and shotgun certificates following conviction under the Deer Act 1980.
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Persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts in England and Wales for offences under the Deer Act 1980 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 Proceeded against 17 9 36 51 30 Found guilty 17 7 31 38 26
1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 Conditional discharge — 1 — — — Probation order — — — — 1 Fine 14 6 20 26 19 Community service order — — — 5 5 Detention centre order — — 1 — — Fully suspended sentence — — 8 4 — Unsuspended sentence 3 — — 3 — Otherwise dealt with — — 2 — 1
§ Sir John Farrasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the operation of the legislation relating to offences of poaching of deer in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorThe Government have no plans for any changes to the present controls. Enforcement is the responsibility of the chief officers of police in the areas concerned.