Stop and Search (Hansard, 20 December 1994)

§ Mr. Cox
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what circumstances a police officer who stops a person and bodily searches that person is required to make an official report of the incident in his log book and also in the police station to which he is assigned; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Maclean
These matters are regulated by section 3 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and by the code of practice for the exercise by police officers of statutory powers of stop and search—code A—made under section 66(a) of the Act.
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A written record must be made of all stops and searches by police officers. The record must be made on the form provided for this purpose as soon as practicable after the search. The search record is to be retained at a police station in the area where the search takes place. A copy of the record may be obtained by the person searched if he asks for it within one year of the date of the search.

§ Mr. Bernie Grant
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) in what circumstances the Metropolitan police maintain computer records relating to individual stop-and-search incidents; and what is the purpose of so doing in respect of those searches which do not give rise to an arrest.

§ Mr. Maclean
[holding answer 19 December 1994]: I understand from the Commissioner that computer records of all stop-and-search incidents are maintained at local divisional level throughout the Metropolitan police district. This is in compliance with section 3(7) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, which requires that the police record all occasions when a person is searched. Anyone who is stopped and searched by the police is entitled to request a copy of the record of the search for up to 12 months after the search took place; computer records are therefore maintained to allow for such requests. They are destroyed after 12 months.

§ Mr. Grant
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 1 December.Official Report, column 843, which five police authorities estimated the numbers of ethnic minorities stopped and searched in the fiscal year 1993–94; what is the basis of their estimates; for what reasons these authorities could not collect actual figures; and what action he will take to ensure that all police forces comply with the request to supply accurate figures for the numbers of ethnic minorities stopped and searched in the forthcoming year.

§ Mr. Maclean
[holding answer 19 December 1994]: Statistics of the number of stops and searches conducted in 1993–94 were collected from forces by Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary. Estimated figures were provided in respect of five forces: Essex, Humberside, Lancashire, Sussex and West Midlands.
In Essex, the form containing the ethnic split was not introduced until 1 October 1993, and in Humberside not until 1 September 1993. HMIC received returns only for the portions of the fiscal year after those dates, and multiplied the figures appropriately.
In the case of Lancashire, the relevant form was not introduced until 1 January 1994. The force estimated the ethnic breakdown of the total years' result based on the split disclosed during the months for which these figures were available. In Sussex, the form was not introduced until 1 July 1993; the force estimated the annual total by grossing up from the available figures.
West Midlands was unable to provide actual data because the force did not receive forms from every subdivision for every month. It furnished HMIC with an estimate on the basis of approximately 94 per cent. of potential returns.
These were difficulties associated with the introduction of this new monitoring procedure and it is not expected that there will be such difficulties in subsequent years.