§ Mr. Martyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number of prosecutions there were in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available for shooting game without a game licence. [22398]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 17 December 2001]Shooting game without a game licence is an offence under Section 23 of the Game Act 1831. The number of defendants prosecuted for shooting game without a game licence cannot be separately identified, in information held centrally on the Home Office's Court Proceedings Database, from the number of defendants prosecuted for the offences of killing or taking of game without a licence by other means, laying poison to destroy game, taking or destroying eggs of game, killing game on Sunday or Christmas Day, killing game out of season and the occupier of land killing game without authority. Data showing the number of defendants prosecuted for all these offences during the years 1991–2000 are given in the table.
Defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for killing game without a licence' England and Wales, 1991–2000 Total number proceeded against 1991 50 1992 38 1993 73 1994 27 1995 19 1996 22 1997 21 1998 20 1999 25 20002 9 1Also includes the offences of laying poison to destroy game, taking or destroying eggs of game, etc., killing game on Sunday or Christmas Day, killing game out of season, and occupier of land killing game without authority.
792W2Staffordshire police force were able to submit only sample data for prosecutions at magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust at a detailed level and have been excluded from this table.
Note:
All data are given on a principal offence basis.