§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will establish an independent inquiry into the accuracy of speed measuring devices used by police authorities.
§ Mr. MayhewNo. This is a matter for chief officers of police.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any formal approval has been given by his Department to the Tribar Muni Quip hand-held digital radar.
§ Mr. MayhewNo. This is a matter for chief officers of police.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Swansea, East on 31 March Official Report, c. 52, what form the review of operating instructions for the Muni Quip hand-held digital radar will take; and what is the time scale envisaged for it.
§ Mr. MayhewThe review will be conducted by the Association of Chief Police Officers, and it is expected that it will be completed shortly, we hope within a matter of weeks.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has as to the 370W number of police authorities which have suspended the use of the Muni Quip radar devices or any similar equipment since the appeal in the case of Hughes on 24 March.
§ Mr. MayhewSo far as is known, only the Gwent constabulary has temporarily suspended the use of the Muni Quip radar device, pending a review of the operating procedures.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what radar speed devices are in use by police authorities; and whether he is satisfied as to the accuracy of each type of device.
§ Mr. MayhewRadar speed devices in use in England and Wales include:
- P.E.T.A.
- Gatso Mini Radar
- Mesta
- Multinova
- Muni Quip
- Kustom H.R.4
- Kustom H.R.8
- K15
All have been tested for accuracy by chief officers of police, and there is no reason to doubt their accuracy if operated according to instructions.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in the light of the judgment of His Honour Judge Pitchford in the case of Hughes, whether he is satisfied as to the accuracy and beam width selectivity of the Muni Quip hand-held digital radar.
§ Mr. MayhewThe accuracy and beam width selectivity were tested by chief officers of police, and these matters are fully explained to operators during training. There is no reason to doubt the accuracy of the device if operated according to instructions.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, up to 24 March 1981, how many convictions there were in speeding cases where the prosecution used evidence provided by the Muni Quip device.
§ Mr. MayhewThe information requested is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. Andersonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set type-approval standards and testing procedures for radar speed measuring devices.
§ Mr. MayhewNo.