HC Deb 27 January 1998 vol 305 cc145-6W
Mr. Burns

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the change in the crime rate in the centre of Chelmsford since January 1996. [25667]

Mr. Michael

Information collected centrally on recorded crime is broken down only as far as police force area. More localised data can be obtained direct from the Force Statistics Officer for Essex Police.

Mr. Burns

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the impact of the introduction of CCTV on the crime level in the centre of Chelmsford; and how many arrests have been made as a result of CCTV. [25785]

Mr. Michael

The police in Chelmsford report that there has been a 21 per cent. overall reduction in recorded crime in the Chelmsford town beat area since the closed circuit television system became operational in January 1996; and that 426 arrests were directly attributable to incidents being caught on camera.