§ Mr. Alex Carlileasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any proposals to provide extra funds to the National Association of Victims Support Schemes to make up the shortfall in the association's 81W funding for 1986–87 as a result of the abolition of the Greater London council and the metropolitan counties; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorThe National Association of Victims Support Schemes receives no funding from the GLC or the metropolitan counties. I understand, however, that a number of local victims support schemes receive financial assistance from such authorities. The Government have ensured that successor authorities will have access in 1986–87 to all the resources that the GLC and the metropolitan counties would have received. Additional arrangements for voluntary bodies include powers for local authorities collectively to make grants, and transitional grant support from central Government on projects to the value of £20 million a year.
Notifiable offences recorded by the police in which firearms are reported to have been discharged* by principal victim, degree of injury and type of weapon England and Wales Number of offences Principal victim Police† Other persons Year Type of weapon Fatal injury Non-fatal inury‡ No injury‡ Total discharges║ Fatal injury Non-fatal injury‡ No injury‡ Total discharges 1979 Shotgun — 2 2 4 41 72 96 209 Pistol — — 1 1 8 24 11 43 Other firearm — 7 6 13 4 2,816 2,167 4,987 1980 Shotgun — 2 7 9 12 66 88 166 Pistol — 2 — 2 8 35 16 59 Other firearm — 9 6 15 2 2,389 2,592 4,983 1981 Shotgun — — 3 3 20 90 122 232 Pistol — 1 1 2 11 56 38 105 Other firearm — 8 4 12 1 2,587 3,042 5,630 1982 Shotgun — 1 3 4 35 98 118 251 Pistol 3 1 — 4 6 44 21 71 Other firearm — 5 7 12 2 2,290 2,979 5,271 1983 Shotgun — — 1 1 32 80 104 216 Pistol — 1 2 3 9 41 22 72 Other firearm — 9 7 16 — 2,325 3,127 5,452 1984 Shotgun 1 2 1 4 40 82 71 193 Pistol 2 5 1 8 19 40 29 88 Other firearm 1 5 6 12 4 2,250 3,380 5,634 * Includes cases where the discharge was not directed at the victim or where the victim was not present (eg some criminal damage offences). † These figures may not include cases in which police officers were fired at while investigating offences against other persons. ‡ In some of the cases where a non-fatal injury or no injury occurred the principal victim was not recorded; these cases have been included under "other persons" but some of the victims may have been police officers. ║ The figures on total discharges for 1979 and 1981 have been revised slightly from those given in the Official Report for 3 February 1983, vol. 36 column 168.