§ Miss Fookesasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community service orders have been imposed since the introduction of the scheme in 1973; and, of these, how many have been imposed on young adults and how many on 17-year-olds.
§ Mr. MayhewInformation in the form requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the numbers of persons given a community service order at a court appearance in each of the years 1974 to 1979 are published in table 23, page 26, of the issue for 1979 of300W "Probation and after-care statistics, England and Wales". The number of persons aged 17 and under 21 years given a community service order for their principal offences is published annually in "Criminal statistics, England and Wales" (see tables 6.13, l(d) and 5(d) and paragraph 1.20 of the issue for 1979 Cmnd. 8098).