§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many persons convicted of an indictable offence in England and Wales in 1986 by a magistrates' court had committed an offence which involved violence;
(2) what percentage of persons sentenced to a period of immediate imprisonment in 1986 in England and Wales had been sentenced to a period of six months or less.
§ Mr. John PattenIn 1986, there were 34,647 persons found guilty of violence against the person, sexual offences and robbery. There were 42,743 persons sentenced at all courts to immediate imprisonment, of whom 49 per cent. rceived sentences of six months or less. This information can be found in table S1.1(A) of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales, Supplementary Tables 1986, volume 1" and in table 7.28 and 7.29 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales 1986", (Cm. 233), respectively, copies of which are in the Library.