§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police response vehicles have been in road accidents while on operational duty in(a) 1994, (b) 1995, (c) 1996, (d) 1997, (e) 1998, (f) 1999 and (g) 2000; and if he will make a statement. [20617]
699W
§ Mr. DenhamThe table sets out, from police force returns to Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, the number of accidents involving police vehicles which were engaged in immediate/emergency response or pursuit at the time of the accident.
Year Number of accidents 1994–95 5,386 1995–96 6,611 1996–97 4,972 1997–98 5,057 1998–99 5,037 1999–2000 5,382 2000–01 5,969 Note:
Four forces did not submit a return in 1994–95, two forces in 1995–96, two forces in 1996–97, and one force in 2000–01.
Chief officers of police share fully the Government's view that everything possible must be done to minimise the risk of accidents involving police vehicles, while recognising the need to ensure a prompt response to emergencies. The police are taking forward a number of initiatives to help to achieve this, including the implementation of recommendations from an Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) report on police pursuit driver training. In addition, ACPO has produced a guide to pursuit management to be used by forces, and a new police driver training course, launched December last year, introduced a universal standard for driving in England and Wales which recognises the need to give priority to public safety above all other considerations.
It is police practice to consider continuously the consequences of a pursuit and whether to break it off. Other operational measures employed to avoid or curtail pursuits include the use of helicopters, the early deployment of tyre deflation devices across the carriageway, and the use of tactical pursuit and containment, where a number of police vehicles box in a target vehicle to bring it safely to a halt.