§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he has any plans to strengthen present legislation on incitement to murder; and if he will make a statement;
(2) how many prosecutions have taken place in the last 12 months for incitement to murder; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John Patten[holding answer 15 February 1990]: We have no present plans to change the law on incitement to murder, but we keep it under review.
In 1988 there were 30 prosecutions under section 4 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977: together, these provisions make it an offence to solicit or propose to another to commit murder or to conspire to do so. Figures are not kept separately for each provision. There were also 1,030 prosecutions under section 16 of the 1861 Act, which makes it an offence to make threats to kill with intention that the recipient of those threats should fear that they will be carried out. Information for 1989 will not be available until autumn 1990.