§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications (1) how often the British Broadcasting Corporation detector van has been in the Bogside and Creggan estate areas of Londonderry since 1st January, 1971; how many cases have been detected in those areas of persons using a television set without a licence; how many summonses have been served; and how many cases have been successfully prosecuted;
(2) how often the British Broadcasting Corporation detector van has been in the Ballymurphy, Turf Lodge, Ardoyne, Upper Falls and Lower Falls areas of Belfast since 1st January, 1971; how many cases have been detected in those 20W areas of persons using a television set without a licence; how many summonses have been served; and how many cases have been successfully prosecuted.
§ Mr. ChatawayTwo Post Office television detector cars were operating in Northern Ireland until 10th August this year. They were in Belfast from 17th May to 4th June but did not operate in the districts mentioned. One detector car visited Londonderry between 26th April and 14th May and between 19th July and 6th August but did not operate in the areas mentioned. Subsequently the detector cars were garaged and then removed to Great Britain for use there. But detector cars are only one of several ways of discovering unlicensed users of television sets.
Separate details of the prosecutions resulting from the operation of detector cars alone are not kept. Nor are figures of unlicensed use of sets discovered in separate areas of Londonderry and Belfast recorded. Neither of these statistics is readily ascertainable. However, in the period from 1st January to 30th June, 1971, the latest date for which figures are available, 33,000 unlicensed users of television sets were discovered in Northern Ireland. The great majority obtained licences but 457 were successfully prosecuted in Northern Ireland. Information on how many unsuccessful prosecutions there were is not readily available but the number is likely to be minimal.