§ Mr. William RossTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many firearms, listed by the category under which they are identified by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, have been stolen in each Royal Ulster Constabulary division in each of the last five years from(a) civilians and (b) the security forces, or as much of such information as is available to him.
§ Mr. Cope[holding answer 9 January 1990]: Information split into Royal Ulster Constabulary divisions is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Readily available information is as follows:
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Firearms stolen in Northern Ireland 1984–89 Year Stolen from Bullet firing Shotguns 1 Air weapons/miscellaneous 1985 Security forces 16 — — Civilians 19 79 9 1986 Security forces 14 — 1
Year Stolen from Bullet firing Shotguns 1 Air weapons/miscellaneous Civilians 13 96 20 1987 Security forces 189 — 4 Civilians 34 91 13 1988 Security forces 14 — — Civilians 16 54 13 1989 Security forces 19 — — Civilians 17 42 4 1 Miscellaneous includes: Blank firing weapons, muzzle loading weapons, antique weapons, tranquilliser guns and starting pistols.