§ Mr. Masonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many prosecutions have resulted in Whitby magistrates' court in each of the last 10 years from illegal operations of salmon poaching by drift netting;
(2) if he will list the number of salmon poaching offences that have come before the Berwick magistrates' court in each of the last 10 years.
§ Mr. MellorSalmon poaching may lead to proceedings under the Theft Act 1965 or the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975. The records available to us, which separately identify only proceedings under the latter, may be incomplete and do not include the circumstances of the offence. They show the information given in the following table. Corresponding information for earlier years could be provided only at disproportionate cost; that for 1983 is not yet available.
Defendants proceeded against for offences under the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975 in the petty sessional divisions of Berwick-upon-Tweed and Whitby Strand Number of defendants Year Benvick-upon Tweed Whitby Strand 1980 13 14 1981 4 25 1982 16 17