HC Deb 12 December 1984 vol 69 cc479-83W
Mr. Corbyn

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the policy of the Metropolitan police on the use of dogs.

Mr. Giles Shaw

The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis tells me that Metropolitan police dogs are used at the discretion of local commanders in a wide variety of circumstances. Dogs are trained to track, to search for persons or property, and to detain escaping suspects. They are always deployed under strict supervision, and under force orders should not be used in any situation which might restrict the animal's freedom of movement or reduce the handler's ability to control it.

Mr. Dobson

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the published figures for clear-up rates in the Metropolitan police area for the first six months of 1984 include any changes which result from the experiment referred to in his written answer of 28 November, Official Report, c. 493.

Mr. Giles Shaw

[pursuant to his reply, 3 December 1984, c. 4]: I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that offences cleared up as a result of the experimental scheme of interviewing prisoners about otherwise unsolved crimes will be included in the statistics in the usual way. The scheme was introduced in April 1984 after earlier pilot schemes in two divisions, but, as there is inevitably some delay before admitted offences can be verified and recorded, it is unlikely that the statistics for the first six months of 1984 will have been materially affected. The scheme will be fully evaluated after it has been in operation for 12 months.

Table 2. Notifiable offences recorded by the Metropolitan Police
Number
District 1983 1984
1st quarter 2nd quarter 3rd quarter 4th quarter 1st quarter 2nd quarter
A (parts) Westminster 2,012 1,886 2,318 2,495 2,147 2,127
B Kensington and Chelsea 5,396 5,705 6,301 5,649 5,758 5,556

Mr. Dobson

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what were the crime rates and clear-up rates in the Metropolitan police area in each quarter since March 1979; what is the crime rate and clear-up rate in total and for each standard category of crime in each Metropolitan police district in each quarter in 1983 and to date; and if he will give the establishment and number of police actually on duty in each Metropolitan police district in each quarter in 1983 and to date.

Mr. Giles Shaw

[pursuant to his reply, 29 November, 1984, c. 545]: I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that the available information is as given in the following four tables and in the set of more detailed tables which I am sending to the hon. Member and placing in the Library of the House, giving the number of offences recorded and the number cleared up in each district for each of the main offence groups in each quarter from the beginning of 1983 to the second quarter of 1984.

Clear-up rates differ markedly according to the type of offence and its circumstances both within offence groups and between offence groups. Variations in clear-up rates between districts reflect variations in the types and circumstances of the offence recorded. The number of offences cleared up and the clear-up rate may also be affected by variations in police recording practices. Offences cleared up in one period may include offences initially recorded in previous periods. Clear-up rates may be particularly misleading if they are based on small numbers of recorded offences.

Information is not available on the numbers of police on duty, which vary according to need and depend upon the operation of the shift system, training commitments, the provision of aid to other forces or to other parts of the MPD, annual leave and sick leave, and so on.

Table 1—Notifiable offences recorded by the Metropolitan Police
Year 1st quarter 2nd quarter 3rd quarter 4th quarter year
Number of offences (thousands)
1979* 129 143 138 147 557
1980 140 149 142 153 584
1981 149 161 156 166 631
1982 164 169 171 185 688
1983 159 167 160 173 639
1984 172 177
Clear up rate (percentage)
1979* 20.8 20.1 20.7 19.8
1980 20.9 20.8 20.7 17.7
1981 18.0 17.0 16.0 16.4
1982 15.7 15.8 15.6 16.8
1983 16.7 17.5 17.1 17.1
1984 17.8 16.8
* Figures for 1979 are not entirely comparable with those for subsequent years because of changes in the counting rules made in 1980.

District 1983 1984
1st quarter 2nd quarter 3rd quarter 4th quarter 1st quarter 2nd quarter
C (parts) Westminster 5,342 5,566 5,481 6,037 5,941 5,537
D (parts) Westminster 6,177 6,682 6,856 7,121 6,973 7,832
E Camden 6,887 6,967 7,276 7,663 7,894 7,959
F Hammersmith 3,917 4,044 4,088 4,283 3,909 4,139
G Hackney 5,828 6,724 6,472 6,840 6,507 7,143
H Tower Hamlets 5,046 5,558 4,930 5,587 5,914 5,772
I Heathrow, etc. 2,644 2,604 2,432 2,505 2,505 2,456
J Waltham Forest, Redbridge, etc. 7,299 7,795 6,831 7,954 7,536 9,066
K Havering, Barking and Newham 10,537 10,095 9,648 11,675 11,901 11,503
L Lambeth 8,773 9,083 9,354 9,436 9,072 10,130
M Southwark 7,568 8,064 7,243 8,714 8,590 8,931
N Islington 5,547 5,750 4,989 5,520 5,670 6,617
P Lewisham and Bromley 10,462 11,170 10,715 11,977 11,857 11,773
Q Brent and Harrow 6,418 7,756 6,754 7,169 6,985 7,024
R Greenwich and Bexley 8,456 9,097 8,293 8,755 8,753 8,878
S Barnet and Hertsmere 4,588 5,133 4,768 5,490 5,154 5,362
T Richmond upon Thames and Hounslow 5,268 5,906 5,016 5,514 5,995 5,377
V Kingston upon Thames Merton, etc. 5,694 5,723 5,150 6,233 5,235 5,406
W Wandsworth 6,502 6,672 6,649 6,631 7,045 7,418
X Ealing and Hillingdon 7,811 7,889 7,337 7,983 8,188 7,981
Y Haringey and Enfield 8,478 8,607 8,835 10,114 9,875 11,031
Z Croydon, Sutton, etc. 9,892 9,812 8,994 9,919 10,104 9,592
Others 2,442 2,847 2,954 2,231 2,616 2,381
Total 158,980 167,135 159,683 173,495 172,124 176,991

Table 3. Clear up rate* in the Metropolitan Police District by district
Percentage
District 1983 1984
1st quarter 2nd quarter 3rd quarter 4th quarter 1st quarter 2nd quarter
A (parts) Westminster 22.0 23.4 27.4 22.8 23.4 26.1
B Kensington and Chelsea 20.7 21.5 19.5 18.5 22.3 20.6
C (parts) Westminster 25.8 23.3 21.5 25.3 24.9 24.5
D (parts) Westminster 23.7 27.9 23.1 25.0 27.6 24.9
E Camden 16.4 15.4 13.8 14.2 14.6 14.3
F Hammersmith 19.0 17.8 23.0 19.3 20.2 16.6
G Hackney 16.0 13.4 12.9 12.2 16.4 12.1
H Tower Hamlets 12.8 13.3 14.7 17.3 19.0 16.0
I Heathrow, etc. 31.1 26.2 28.3 25.2 25.4 29.8
J Waltham Forest, Redbridge, etc. 15.9 17.6 16.2 14.5 17.1 16.4
K Havering, Barking and Newham 21.2 20.1 18.8 16.4 18.2 17.6
L Lambeth 14.3 13.0 13.6 11.3 12.2 12.5
M Southwark 14.1 14.7 12.5 14.1 15.7 14.1
N Islington 13.8 22.4 17.5 16.0 14.3 13.4
P Lewisham and Bromley 13.0 13.7 13.9 13.6 13.4 15.5
Q Brent and Harrow 15.7 15.6 14.5 14.5 14.7 14.2
R Greenwich and Bexley 13.4 12.1 13.1 15.5 14.4 14.4
S Barnet and Hertsmere 17.4 19.4 20.9 16.0 19.8 16.5
T Richmond upon Thames and Hounslow 20.1 22.8 22.7 25.0 23.0 19.6
V Kingston upon Thames Merton, etc. 18.1 18.6 17.8 19.2 17.3 18.6
W Wandsworth 13.5 17.1 14.5 14.2 13.7 12.8
X Ealing and Hillingdon 11.7 14.1 15.7 19.5 17.0 14.4
Y Haringey and Enfield 16.0 17.3 18.2 18.8 18.5 16.2
Z Croydon, Sutton, etc. 15.0 14.8 16.3 15.4 17.5 18.0
Others 15.6 30.7 23.5 30.7 34.3 31.4
Total 16.7 17.5 17.1 17.1 17.8 16.8
* Notifiable offences cleared up as a percentage of the total number of notifiable offences recorded by the police.

Table 4

Establishment* and strength* of the Metropolitan Police at end of quarter, by district
Number
District †Establishment Strength
1983 1984 1983 1984
1st Quarter 3rd Quarter 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter
A 1,057 1,059 827 838 841 835 840 855 849
B 817 816 841 833 848 844 874 897 870
C 969 966 859 848 849 852 843 863 848
D 1,015 1,013 896 891 901 915 919 918 903
E 1,010 1,009 832 834 842 831 841 854 848

District †Establishment Strength
1983 1984 1983 1984
1st Quarter 3rd Quarter 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter
F 644 643 638 648 662 660 667 679 671
G 684 686 701 695 712 720 732 726 714
H 748 748 715 712 709 715 712 707 704
I 785 784 696 694 698 704 703 702 710
J 1,140 1,138 979 988 991 1,007 1,002 996 996
K 1,321 1,320 1,206 1,206 1,212 1,206 1,214 1,213 1,214
L 887 889 939 959 977 973 977 1,000 983
M 1,057 1,058 914 919 923 922 930 935 929
N 760 764 698 707 714 721 709 718 721
P 1,136 1,136 1,126 1,132 1,151 1,163 1,174 1,165 1,170
Q 945 946 903 898 902 919 912 917 914
R 958 960 817 824 824 835 839 852 866
S 941 943 761 775 796 789 795 793 795
T 943 943 817 824 831 832 833 837 855
V 826 823 693 706 704 709 710 715 726
W 801 804 803 800 788 780 786 812 814
X 989 992 921 920 943 958 954 956 950
Y 1,171 1,173 1,035 1,042 1,056 1,065 1,065 1,067 1,052
Z 1,075 1,076 969 1,004 1,021 1,040 1,050 1,042 1,042
Headquarters 3,936 4,426 5,993 5,959 5,814 5,807 5,699 5,616 5,701
Total 26,615 27,115 26,579 26,656 26,709 26,806 26,780 26,835 26,845
* Regular police, all ranks. Excludes special constables and civilian staff.
† Changes in establishment are less frequent than changes in strength and so figures are given only for the first and last quarters in the period.