§ Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many violent crimes were committed in each police authority area in each(a) month and (b) year since 2000; and if he will make a statement. [66614]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 2 July 2002]: The available figures for recorded crime relate to quarter years from the beginning of 2000 to the end of March 2001, and are given in the table.
It should be noted that recorded violent crime is subject to changes in reporting and recording. For example, the 2001 British Crime Survey found that, over England and Wales as a whole, reporting to the police of common assault rose from 29 per cent. in 1999 to 39 per cent. in the year 2000. Also, the British Crime Survey has shown that, in England and Wales as a whole, the number of common assaults recorded in the survey decreased by 14 per cent. between the 1999 and 2000 calendar years, whereas common assaults recorded by the police increased by an estimated 9 per cent.
From April 2002 the Home Office has started collecting recorded crime data from the police on a monthly basis. These data will be made available in due course, although the format and frequency of publication has yet to be decided.
87W
Number of violent crimes1 recorded by police force area by quarter, from January 2000 to March 2001; with 2000–01 total Police force area January 2000 to March 2000 April 2000 to June 2000 July 2000 to September 2000 October 2000 to December 2000 January 2001 to March 2001 April 2000 to2 March 2001 Gwent 3,545 3,954 3,891 3,855 3,182 14,882 North Wales 1,545 1,610 1,485 1,384 1,448 5,927 South Wales 3,441 3,378 3,643 3,544 3,697 14,262 England and Wales total 172,604 185,640 185,542 180,553 181,639 733,374 1 Violent crimes comprise offences of violence against the person, sexual offences and robbery.
2 Financial year total.
3 Some Metropolitan police areas were transferred to Surrey, Essex or Hertfordshire on 1 April 2000.