§ Sir Richard BodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners are currently serving life sentences(a) in total and (b) by category of offence for which sentenced. [66334]
§ Mr. George HowarthThe latest available information is for 30 November 1998. On that date, there were 4,011 life sentence prisoners (3,872 males and 139 females) in prisons in England and Wales. A breakdown by offence is given in the table.
Population of life sentence prisoners in prisons in England and Wales on 30 November 1998, by offence1 Offence Number Murder 3,241 Manslaughter 135 Other homicide and attempted homicide 87 Other violence against the person 82 Rape 250 Other sexual offences 28 Robbery 45 Arson 92 Other offences 51 Total 4,011 1Provisional figures