§ Norman LambTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many instances of arson there have been in England and Wales in each of the last five years. [146421]
§ Ms BlearsThe available information is given in the table.
Number of offences of arson recorded by the police in England and Wales Number 1998–991 47,273 1999–2000 53,794 2000–01 52,818 2001–022 60,470 2002–032 53,200 1There was a change of counting rules for recorded crime on 1 April 1998, which had the effect of increasing the number of crimes counted. Numbers of offences for years before and after this date are therefore not directly comparable. 2The National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) was introduced across England and Wales in April 2002. Some police forces adopted the standard prior to this date. Broadly, the NCRS had the effect of increasing the number of crimes recorded by the police. Therefore, following the introduction of the standard numbers of recorded crimes are not comparable with previous years.