§ Dr. GodmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish a table showing for each police authority area(a) the number of arrests for drug trafficking, (b) the number of cautions issued for minor forms of drug trafficking and (c) the number of convictions for drug trafficking in each of the past four years.
§ Lord James Douglas-Hamilton[holding answer 16 November 1992]: Information on the number of arrests is not collected centrally. In Scotland the police have no power to issue cautions. The information requested on convictions for drug trafficking offences, based on returns from police forces to the Home Office, is set out in the table.
Number of convictions in Scotland where at least one charge was drug trafficking1 Police authority area 1988 1989 1990 1991 Central 12 21 26 16 Dumfries and Galloway 7 7 6 13 Fife 14 22 19 25 Grampian 23 32 39 47 Lothian and Borders 61 42 80 107 Northern 7 6 14 13 Strathclyde 179 238 296 351 Tayside 36 29 50 53 Other authorities2 1 2 1 0 HM Customs and Excise 17 17 19 15 Total 357 416 550 640 1 Unlawful import or export, unlawful production (excluding cannabis), and being concerned in unlawful supply and possession with intent to supply unlawfully. 2 Includes offenders dealt with by British Transport Police and British Airports Authority.