§ Mr. StephenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will encourage police authorities to recruit more special constables in order to protect the public in shopping centres, on public transport, in areas with a high incidence of burglary, and in other places where the public is particularly at risk.
§ Mr. Charles WardleA national recruitment campaign for special constables has been running since 1991. In the first year of the campaign, numbers increased by 14 per cent. to just over 18,000. The deployment of special constables within a police force area is a matter for the chief constable concerned, but they commonly perform patrol duties in public places.