§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases of reported crime by category there were in rural areas in the United Kingdom in(a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001. [15903]
§ Alun MichaelHome Office data on recorded crime in rural England for the 12 months to March 2001 are taken from the Crime Reduction Partnership Areas linked to all local authorities. Data collected in previous years cannot be directly compared as they used Basic Command Units (Police Force Administration Units) whose boundaries do not all coincide with local authority ones.
Population weighted figures—number of offences per 1,000 population were: violence 6.54, sexual 0.45, robbery 0.31, burglary (dwelling) 4.06, theft of vehicle 2.91, theft from vehicle 7.61.