HC Deb 01 July 1983 vol 44 c161W
Mr. McNamara

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the size of the present prison population in Northern Ireland categorised by age and sex in the following groups: under 18 years, 18 to 25 years, 25 to 30 years, 30 to 40 years, 40 to 50 years, 50 to 60 years, and over 60 years indicating the number of prisoners convicted for terrorist type offences and by which broad group, "Republican" or "Loyalist", those convicted of terrorist type offences would be known.

Mr. Scott

The following table gives a breakdown of the prison population, including those persons detained in young offenders centres, by age and sex as at 19 June 1983:

Male Female
Age (years) Convicted Unconvicted Convicted Unconvicted
Under 18 41 36 3
18 but under 25 733 203 11 6
25 but under 30 722 102 20 2
30 but under 40 419 65 1
40 but under 50 99 23 1 2
50 but under 60 24 7 1
60 and over 6 3
Totals 2,044 439 37 10

Of the 2,081 convicted inmates held in custody at 19 June 1983, it is estimated that about 75 per cent. were serving sentences for terrorist type offences. The classifications "Republican" and "Loyalist" do not admit of precise definition and prisoners are not grouped in this way.