§ Mr. Nicholas BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the annual number of homicides reported by the police in England and Wales in each year since 1958; and if he will express these figures per million of population in England and Wales.
§ Mr. John PattenThe number of offences initially recorded as homicide per million population is given in the following table. In each year since 1967, some 10 to 15 per cent. of such offences were not finally recorded as homicide. Figures for homicides recorded by the police are published annually in chapter 4 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", (figures for offences currently recorded as homicide related to population are in table 4.1), copies of which are in the Library. Corresponding information for 1987 is not yet available.
507W
Offences initially recorded by the police as homicide1 and offences per million population. England and Wales Year initially recorded Offences initially recorded as homicide1 Offences initially recorded as homicide1 per million population 1958 261 5.8 1959 266 5.9 1960 282 6.2 1961 265 5.7 1962 299 6.4 1963 307 6.5 1964 296 6.3 1965 325 6.8 1966 364 7.6 1967 414 8.6 1968 420 8.6 1969 395 8.1 1970 396 8.1 1971 459 9.4 1972 480 9.8 1973 465 9.5 1974 599 12.2 1975 508 10.3 1976 565 11.5 1977 484 9.8 1978 535 10.9 1979 629 12.8 1980 621 12.6 1981 556 11.2 1982 618 12.5 1983 552 11.1 1984 619 12.4 1985 625 12.5 1986 662 13.3 1 Murder, manslaughter and infanticide
§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the current level of burglaries and violent attacks on members of the public.
§ Mr. John PattenIn the first nine months of 1987 recorded offences of burglary fell by 2.5 per cent. compared to the same period in 1986. Burglaries in dwellings fell by nearly 4 per cent.
Recorded offences of violence against the person rose by 11 per cent. Some of this increase is likely to be attributable to increased recording and the greater willingness of victims to come forward, especially to report racial attacks, rapes and domestic violence which have been receiving special police attention in the last year.
The handbook "Practical Ways to Crack Crime", published last week, provides valuable guidance for members of the public about how to prevent burglaries and reduce the risk of becoming a victim of violent crime.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the annual number of armed robberies in England and Wales in each year since 1958.
§ Mr. John PattenThe number of offences recorded by the police in which firearms were reported to have been used, by offence type, is published annually in table 3.1 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", copies of which are in the Library. Comparable figures are not available before 1969.