HC Deb 05 December 1985 vol 88 cc320-1W
Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish the proportion of convictions for offences involving obscene publications, including pleas of guilty in (a) magistrate's courts and (b) Crown courts over the past 10 years:

(2) how many cases have been brought to trial in the Crown court on counts alleging obscenity in each of the past 10 years; how many were guilty pleas; how many were not guilty pleas; and how many not guilty pleas resulted in conviction.

Mr. Mellor

The information available to me, which may be incomplete, is published annually under offence classification 86 in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales, Supplementary Tables" in volume 1, table S1.1(A) for magistrates' courts and in volume 2, table S2.1(A) for the Crown court. The figure of persons found guilty includes cases where the defendant pleaded guilty. Reliable information on plea is not available.

Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is currently considering a reform of the definition of obscenity; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Mellor

My hon. Friend the Member for Davyhulme (Mr. Churchill) has introduced a Bill to amend section 1 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 and we shall be considering the proposals very carefully.

Mr. Lawrence

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his assessment of the present level of obscene publications; and if he will give comparable figures for the past 10 years.

Mr. Mellor

The information available does not allow any reliable assessment to be formed.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to implement paragraph 85 of the Nairobi conference document "Forward Looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women" relating to the control of pornography.

Mr. Mellor

Since 1979 the Government have introduced or supported a number of measures to strengthen the law. My hon. Friend the Member for Davyhulme (Mr. Churchill) has introduced a Bill to amend section 1 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 and we shall be considering the proposals very carefully.