§ Mr. Lomasasked the Secretary of State for Energy how many deaths or accidents have taken place in each year from 1950 to the latest available date as a result of faulty electrical wiring.
§ Dr. John Cunningham:There are no published figures for deaths or accidents resulting from faulty electrical wiring as such, but an analysis of the statutory returns made by electricity boards in England and Wales shows the following number of deaths since 1966 which can be 263W attributed to faulty permanent electrical wiring in domestic premises—figures prior to 1966 are not available:
All electrical deaths Deaths associated with faults in permanent electrical wiring 1966–67 73 3 1967–68 79 2 1968–69 76 3 1969–70 70 3 1970–71 70 2 1971–72 88 3 1972–73 84 3 1973–74 81 1 1974–75 80 5 1975–76 63 7 1976–77 83 3 1977–78 56 None Home Office figures provided by local authority fire brigades show the following fatal and non-fatal casualties resulting from fires in domestic premises in the United Kingdom believed to have originated in electrical wiring. These figures, however, do not distinguish between permanent wiring and wiring for appliances.
Year Non-Fatal Fatal 1966 66 9 1967 71 7 1968 n.a. n.a. 1969 n.a. n.a. 1970 76 12 1971 84 23 1972 108 16 1973 97 20 1974 117 18 1975 n.a. n.a. 1976 93 11 n.a. = Not available.