§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many United Kingdom citizens have been prosecuted and convicted of committing an offence on board a commercial airliner in each year since 1990; and if he will make a statement. [35195]
§ Mr. MichaelUnder Part IV of the Civil Aviation Act 1982, as amended by the Civil Aviation (Amendment) Act 1996, and Part I of the Aviation Security Act 1986, criminal proceedings can be brought if an offence takes place on board a commercial British-controlled aircraft, or a foreign commercial aircraft while in flight to the United16W Kingdom. However, although the Home Office Court Proceedings database records all prosecutions in England and Wales, the data held centrally do not identify whether the offence took place on board an airliner, nor the defendant's nationality.
Court proceedings data for offences including the hijacking of an aircraft are given in the table.
Number of defendants prosecuted at magistrates' courts and convicted1 at all courts for offences under Sections 1–3 and 6(2) of the Aviation Security Act 1982, 1990–1996 England and Wales Offence 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 21995 21996 Hijacking; destroying, damaging or endangering safety of aircraft; other acts endangering or likely to endanger safety of aircraft; and ancillary offences Sections 1–3 and 6(2) Prosecutions — 4 6 3 2 5 15 Committed for trial — 2 3 3 — 5 13 Convictions 3 2 2 — 3 2 1 1 Includes persons proceeded against in earlier years 2 From 1995 onwards data also include offences under the Channel Tunnel (Security) Order 1994 Articles 4,5,7 and 8 (Sec 1(7) Channel Tunnel Act 1987)