§ Mr. BreedTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the clear-up rate by police force was for burglaries in(a) urban, (b) rural and (c) suburban areas in each year since 1979; [78757]
(2) what the average clear-up rate by police force was in each year since 1979. [78756]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 4 November 2002]Recorded crime and detection statistics are not recorded by whether the crimes are committed in urban, rural or suburban areas. The requested figures for clear-up (detections) rate by police force area for each year since 1979 are given in the table, which has been placed in the Library.
There was a change in counting rules for recorded crime on 1 April 1998, which increased the total number of crimes counted in each police force area, and therefore may have affected the detection rate. Detection rates after this date are therefore not directly comparable with previous years.
There was also a change in the counting rules for detections on 1 April 1999, the new instructions providing more precise and rigorous criteria for 814W securing a detection, with the underlying emphasis on the successful result of a police investigation. For example, detections obtained by the interview of a convicted prisoner were no longer included. Numbers of detections before and after this date are therefore not directly comparable.
The adoption of the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) in April 2002, aimed to move the crime counts for the 43 forces of England and Wales onto a more consistent national basis, and to take a more victim-centred approach to crime recording. A small number of forces adopted the principles of the standard prior to April 2002. As a result both recorded crime and detection rates will have been affected for 2001–02. Had this effect not occurred, it has been estimated that the overall detection rate in England and Wales in 2001–02 would have been 24 per cent., the same as the previous year.
§ Mr. BreedTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many burglaries with entry per 10,000 households in(a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02 and (c) 2002–03 took place in (i) urban and (ii) rural areas of England and Wales; and if he will break them down by region. [78856]
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 5 November 2002]Recorded crime statistics are not recorded by whether the crimes are committed in urban, rural or suburban areas. However, the British Crime Survey (BCS), indicates the percentage of households victims of burglary with entry (once or more) by area type for interviews conducted in the 2001–02 financial year. The BCS estimates that 1.2 per cent. of households in rural areas were victims of burglary with entry (once or more) compared to 2.1 per cent. of those in urban areas.
The latest British Crime Survey produced for the first time, for BCS interviews conducted in 2001–02 estimates of burglary with entry per 10,000 households, and attempted burglary per 10,000 households, by region. Figures were not recorded on this basis before this, and the figures for 2002–03 are not yet available. Regional figures are only given for the BCS due to the variability of specific offence figures at police force level. The figures for 2001–02 BCS interviews are given in the table.
815W
Burglaries recorded by the BCS, by region 2001–021 Rates BCS Figures2 Region Burglary with entry per 10,000 households Attempted burglary per 10,000 households North East Region 454 167 North West Region 310 280 Yorkshire and the Humber Region 364 221 East Midlands Region 198 198 West Midlands Region 188 279 East of England Region 188 111 London Region3 308 204 South East Region 149 143 South West Region 239 156 Wales 159 76 England and Wales 252 190 England and Wales4 243 188 1 Household data have been revised since publication on 12 July 2002 2 Regional figures only are given for the BCS due to the variability of specific offence figures at police force area level.
3 The BCS does not identify City of London and Metropolitan areas within the London Region.
4 Excluding London Region.