HC Deb 03 February 2004 vol 417 cc788-9W
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effect on total recorded crime of changes in recording practice since 1997—98. [150185]

Ms Blears

There have been two major changes to recording practices which have affected total recorded crime since 1997-98. In April 1998, the Home Office Counting Rules were substantially revised and in April 2002 the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) was adopted nationally in England and Wales. These changes were introduced to promote greater consistency between police forces in the recording of crime, to take a more victim-oriented approach to crime recording and to improve the overall quality of statistics on recorded crime.

It is estimated that the changes to the Home Office Counting Rules introduced in April 1998 had the effect of increasing total recorded crime by 14 per cent. and the introduction of the NCRS is estimated to have increased total recorded crime by 10 per cent. in 2002—03.

Further details on these changes to recording practices and their effects on recorded crime statistics can be found in "Recorded Crime Statistics England and Wales, April 1998 to March 1999" and "Crime in England and Wales 2002—03". copies of which are available in the Library. A more detailed account of the impact of NCRS is given in "National Crime Recording Standards (NCRS): An Analysis of the Impact on Recorded Crime. Companion Volume to Crime in England and Wales 2002—03", which is available on the Home Office website.

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects measures introduced by the Department to result in a reduction of recorded crime. [150186]

Ms Blears

The latest published data, covering the period July to September 2003, show that total recorded crime is stable compared to the same period 12 months previously. This includes falls in robbery (2 per cent.), domestic burglary (3 per cent.), other burglary (8 per cent.), and thefts of and from vehicles (8 per cent.).

Recorded crime is not the best indicator of long-term trends in crime because it is sensitive to changes in police recording practices and public reporting to the police. However, the British Crime Survey, which is not affected by these factors and which covers unreported and unrecorded crime as well as crimes reported to the police, shows that crime has fallen by 25 per cent. since 1997, with a further I per cent. fall in the 12 months to September 2003 compared to the year ending September 2002.

Mr. Wiggin

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department why statistics on crime in Wales are not separated from statistics for England. [150463]

Ms Blears

Statistics on crime in Wales are published separately in a number of publications. For example, the "Digest of Welsh Statistics 2003", published by the National Assembly for Wales, contains a chapter on crime and justice statistics. This can be found on the Welsh Assembly website at http: //www.wales.gov.uk/ keypubstatisticsforwales/content/publication.htm. A range of other statistics are available through the Welsh Assembly website at http: //www.wales.gov.uk/ keypubstatisticsforwales/topicindex/topics.htm under "Crime".

The Home Office Statistical Bulletin 7/03, "Crime in England and Wales 2002/2003" includes breakdowns of statistics for Wales, and for police forces within Wales, along with equivalent figures for English regions. These statistics include the number of recorded offences broken down by offence group, with offences per 1,000 population given for these figures. Victimisation rates are also given, as well as overall detection rates over time for Wales, methods of detection in 2002—03, and rates of detection for each main offence group in 2002—03. There are also breakdowns of violent crime offences, burglary and vehicle crime offences by police force area. In the internet publication, a separate chapter contains a summary for Wales of the main findings from crime statistics and British Crime Survey and this is available at http: //www.homeoffice.gov.ukirds/pdfs2/wales.pdf.

Supplementary Volume 2 to "Crime in England and Wales 2002/2003", which deals with public attitudes to crime, disorder and the criminal justice system, was published on 22 January. It includes figures for Wales, as well as English regions, concerning confidence in the criminal justice system, confidence in the police, perceptions of crime, and worry about crime.