Non-scheduled Offences

HC Deb 18 January 1984 vol 52 cc263-5W

Mr. McNamara

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will give separately for magistrates' courts and Crown courts for each year since 1979 the

Constabulary and British Army in Northern Ireland for each year since 1969, giving details of the number of effectives in each of the following categories: Royal Ulster Constabulary regulars, Royal Ulster Constabulary full-time reserves, Royal Ulster Constabulary part-time reserves, Ulster Defence Regiment regular battalion, Ulster Defence Regiment part-time battalion, British Army and British Territorial Army.

Mr. Scott

The strengths of the Army, Territorial Army and RUC and its Reserve are as follows:

number of cases involving non-scheduled offences in which pleas of not guilty were entered; in how many of these cases verdicts of not guilty were returned; and in how many of these cases trial was by jury.

Mr. Scott

The relevant information on all cases in 1983 is not yet available but that for 1979–82 is as follows:

	Crown Courts	Magistrates' Courts
Year	Pleas 'Not Guilty' entered	Verdicts 'Not Guilty' returned	Pleas 'Not Guilty' entered	Verdicts 'Not Guilty' returned
1979	130	93	—	—
1980	113	74	3,025	1,321
1981	141	96	5,214	2,249
1982	145	81	6,119	2,532

In all non-scheduled cases tried in the Crown courts, trial is by jury.

Notes

1. 1. The figures refer only to the principal offence.
2. 2. The figures for the magistrates' courts include motoring offences.
3. 3. Figures for 1979 for magistrates' courts are not readily available owing to the introduction that year of a change in the method of recording the relevant statistics.