§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been imprisoned in each of the last 15 years for offences related to(a) dealing in cannabis and (b) using cannabis; and if he will make a statement. [133902]
§ Caroline FlintThe table shows the number of people sentenced to custody in England and Wales for drugs offences involving cannabis, from 1993 to 2001. Before 1993 offences relating to cannabis were not separately identified.
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Number of offenders sentenced to immediate custody at all courts for drug offences involving cannabis1,2 England and Wales 1993 to 2001 Offence description Statute 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 Supplying or offering (or being concerned in) to supply a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 4(3) 315 362 457 628 650 Having possession of a controlled drug (cannabis) with intent to supply Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 5(3) 516 678 925 983 1,129 Production or being concerned in production of a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Secs 4(2), 6(2) 20 66 125 178 233 Having possession of a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 5(2), as amended by Criminal Justice & Public Order Act 1994, Sec 157, Sch 8, part II 155 167 194 204 268 Permitting premises to be used for unlawful purposes (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 8 9 7 21 17 18 Total 1,015 1,280 1,722 2,010 2,298
Offence description Statute 1998 1999 2000 2001 Supplying or offering (or being concerned in) to supply a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 4(3) 656 573 405 265 Having possession of a controlled drug (cannabis) with intent to supply Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 5(3) 1,284 1,112 808 618 Production or being concerned in production of a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Secs 4(2),6(2) 216 206 156 126 Having possession of a controlled drug (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 5(2), as amended by Criminal Justice & Public Order Act 1994, Sec 157, Sch 8, part II 410 451 361 290 Permitting premises to be used for unlawful purposes (cannabis) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Sec 8 27 25 9 10 Total 2,593 2,367 1,739 1,309 1 These data are on the principal offence basis. 2 This relates to drug offences where cannabis can be separately identified.
§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests of cannabis users were made in each of the last 15 years; what he estimates the cost to police resources was of making these arrests; and if he will make a statement. [133904]
§ Caroline FlintThe data available centrally on arrests for drug offences do not give details of the type of drug for which an individual was arrested, so information on the number of arrests for cannabis offences, together with costs, is not currently available.
We do have data on the number of persons dealt with for possession of cannabis. This is the closest approximation to the number of arrests. The figures appear in the table.
The figures are taken from the annual Home Office Statistical Bulletin. They are available on the RDS website http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs2/ hosb402.pdf and in the Library.
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Persons found guilty, cautioned, given a fiscal fine or dealt with by compounding for possession of cannabis by year, 1986 to 2000. Number 1986 16,640 1987 18,800 1988 23,230 1989 30,030 1990 36,090 1991 38,460 1992 37,440 1993 50,710 1994 65,100 1995 68,600 1996 65,100 1997 79,090 1998 91,150 1999 82,130 2000 70,310 Source:
Home Office Drug Seizure and Offender Statistics, United Kingdom—Supplementary Tables and Findings 202