§ Mr. Damian GreenTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many thefts were committed on(a) the railways and (b) buses in each year since 1997. [175453]
§ Mr. McNultyThe British Transport Police (BTP) have provided the following information on the number of recorded thefts on the railways within Great Britain since 1998; information is not readily available for earlier than 1998.
The offence of theft on the railway includes theft from the person, theft of personal property and theft of luggage. In April 2002 BTP adopted the National Crime Recording standard, which makes the reporting of crime more victim focused, and crime is assessed on the probability of such offences having taken place. A crime will be recorded if on the balance of probability: (a) the circumstances as reported amount to a crime defined by law and (b) there is no credible evidence to the contrary. The introduction of this standard accounts for a proportion of the rise between 2001–02 and 2002–03.
Total number of thefts 1998–99 19,018 1999–2000 26,075 2000–01 23,670 2001–02 24,632 2002–03 32,035 2003–04 31,149 No data is held centrally regarding the number of thefts committed on buses. However, it is known that there were 254 robberies from bus crews in 2001 and 294 in 2002. The Safer Travel on Buses and Coaches Panel (STOP) has been established to look at ways to combat assaults, anti-social behaviour and vandalism at stops and stations and on vehicles and property. The Panel brings together those involved in dealing with the issue of safety and security, and includes operators, local authorities, police and unions. It is charged with the important task of facilitating the exchange of ideas and spreading best practice and is considering how the collection of accurate bus and coach crime data can be improved.