§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what proposals he has to combat acts of vandalism on railway lines; and if he will make a statement on the implementation of anti-vandalism programmes on the railways. [58200]
§ Mr. Jamieson[holding answer 22 May 2002]: The problem of vandalism on the railways is taken very seriously by the Government, the Health and Safety Executive, Railtrack, the British Transport police and the railway industry.
512WCurrent initiatives to reduce vandalism on the rail network include:
Leave Sites Safe and Secure"—a Railtrack campaign to clear lineside debris which could be used in acts of vandalism. The overall aim of the campaign is to remove or safely secure all lineside materials by October 2002. The railway industry is working closely with HM Railway Inspectorate (HMRI) to achieve this objective;National Route Crime Week" 17–25 June sponsored by the National Co-ordinating Group for Trespass and Vandalism (an SRA/Railway Safety body). There will be a number of activities including an open debate at the Health and Safety Commission's (HSC) Rail Industry Advisory Committee meeting on 25 June;Industry programmes for reducing vandalism, including a range of targeted engineering measures such as improved railway fencing and caging bridges at vulnerable locations. HMRI monitor these programmes and take action if necessary.
§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many(a) incidents of and (b) prosecutions there were for (i) vandalism, (ii) informed vandalism and (iii) trespass on rail lines in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [58196]
§ Mr. Jamieson[holding answer 22 May 2002]: Information held by the British Transport police on reported vandalism offences (there is no defined difference between informed and non-informed vandalism) in each of the last five years is contained in the following table:
Number of offences 1997–98 13,751 1998–99 12,855 1999–2000 13,743 2000–01 13,349 2001–02 15,075 Information held by the British Transport police on adults/juveniles charged or summonsed to court for vandalism from 1998–99 onwards is contained in the following table (due to archiving issues the BTP are unable to supply data prior to this data):
Number 1998–99 2,262 1999–2000 1,928 2000–01 1,963 2001–02 2,200 Note:
Those persons charged or summonsed to court may or may not have been convicted and the data do not include cautions.
Information held by the British Transport police on reported trespass offences in each of the last five years is contained in the following table:
Number of reported trespass offences 1997–98 17,451 1998–99 16,535 1999–2000 13,896 2000–01 14,964 2001–02 15,395 Information held by the British Transport police on adults/juveniles charged or summonsed to court for 513W trespassing from 1998–99 onwards is contained in the following table (due to archiving issues the BTP are unable to supply data prior to this data):
Number 1998–99 1,170 1999–2000 973 2000–01 1,215 2001–02 903 Note:
Those persons charged or summonsed to court may or may not have been convicted and the data do not include cautions.