§ Mr. SweeneyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number and percentage of persons found guilty of further offences whilst on bail in each police force in England and Wales in 1981 and 1991.
§ Mr. JackAlthough information is not collected centrally on the number of persons found guilty of further offences while on bail, research findings based on samples of a limited size offer an indication of the percentage of persons convicted of an offence while on court bail. For 1981, the Home Office survey "Estimates of offending by those on bail"—statistical bulletin 22/81—offers a national figure of 9 per cent. Between 1986 and 1988, surveys in four police force areas indicated that the percentage of persons given bail by the courts who were convicted of an offence committed while they were on bail ranged between 8 and 12 per cent. A survey by Northumbria police in 1989 gave a higher figure of 17 per cent., but this included offences "taken into consideration" by the courts or dealt with by formal caution—Morgan P., 1992, "Offending while on bail: a survey of recent studies." Home Office, RPU 65.