HC Deb 19 November 1998 vol 319 cc741-2W
Mr. Livingstone

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been killed as a result of the use of plastic or rubber bullets by the security forces in Northern Ireland since 1970. [60287]

Mr. Ingram

Records show that 16 deaths have resulted from the use of rubber and plastic baton rounds since 1970.

Mr. Livingstone

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been injured as a result of the use of plastic or rubber bullets by the security forces in Northern Ireland since March 1981. [60284]

Mr. Ingram

Records indicate that 594 persons have been injured from the use of plastic baton rounds since March 1981.

Mr. Livingstone

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the Royal Ulster Constabulary(a) first and (b) last used rubber bullets; in which years since 1968 it used rubber bullets; and how many rubber bullets it used in each of those years.[60285]

Mr. Ingram

The first rubber baton rounds were fired by the Army in August 1970 with the last fired in November 1975. Plastic baton rounds were phased in from 1973. The RUC were first issued with baton guns in October 1978. The table shows the number of rounds fired since 1970.

Year Police Army Total
1970 238
1971 16,752
1972 23,363
1973 12,766
1974 2,828
1975 3,701
1976 3,464
1977 1,490
1978 1 1,743
1979 1 1,271
1980 1 1,231
1981 19,649 9,952
1982 335 154
1983 545 116
1984 1,503 265
1985 906 266
1986 1,462 325
1987 1,908 663
1988 2,292 817
1989 836 101
1990 211 46
1991 235 88
1992 39 49
1993 497 26
1994 214 35
1995 273 0
Year Police Army Total
1996 6,949 1,387
1997 2,527 429
1998 (to 15 Nov) 820 62
Totals 41,201 83,628 124,829
1 Police and Army

Notes:

  1. 1. There are no figures separating police and Army firings prior to 1981. Up to 1978 all baton rounds were fired by the Army. From October 1978 to March 1981 the figures shown include both police and Army.
  2. 2. The Army figures for 1997 and the RUC figures for 1998 may be subject to minor adjustment.
  3. 3. The figures for the years 1973, 1974 and 1975 include 42,216 and 3,556 plastic baton rounds respectively.
  4. 4. The dramatic increase in 1981 can be put down to the heavy rioting in support of the hunger strikers who died that year.
>