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14 Oct 2003 : Column 30W—continued
Confiscated Assets
Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the value is of criminals' assets recovered by the Assets Recovery Agency since its launch. [127970]
Caroline Flint: I understand from the Director of the Assets Recovery Agency that, since the agency became operational on 24 February 2003, it has not yet recovered any criminal assets. However, the total value of assets under investigation exceeds £17 million in 33 cases, of which some £10 million is currently frozen under court orders in nine cases pending hearings for recovery orders. In addition, one tax assessment has been issued under Part 6 of the Proceeds of Crime Act for tax in excess of £250,000. The agency has also provided assistance to law enforcement agencies in 11 confiscation order cases raised under the previous legislation with a total value of £3.25 million.
The confiscation powers in the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 are triggered by offences committed after the provisions were brought into force on 24 March 2003, so it will be a while before cases are dealt with by the Crown court in numbers. As of 31 August, six confiscation orders with a value of just under £120,000 have been made against convicted offenders in England and Wales. The value of cash seizures made under the new powers in the Act which came into effect on 30 December 2002
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is over £34 million. 18 restraint orders have also been made on assets with a value of over £4 million. The Enforcement Task Force, in operation since last December, has enforced 248 confiscation orders made under the old legislation with a total value of £14.6million.
Fireworks
Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answers of 16 December 2002, Official Report, column 624W and 28 January, Official Report, column 754W, when he expects to place the findings of the exercise on crime and disorder reduction partnerships and their implications for nuisance and noise associated with fireworks in the Library; and if he will make a statement. [116262]
Ms Blears: The results of the monitoring exercise will shortly be placed in the Library.
Graffiti
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether young offenders may be employed in removing graffiti in Sefton. [128521]
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Paul Goggins: The local youth offending team (Yot) and Probation Service in Sefton periodically supervise young offenders removing graffiti as part of their reparation requirements, subject to meeting health and safety criteria. The Probation Service is currently planning a project with the Safer Merseyside Partnership to clean local alley walks.
Crime (Merseyside)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many murders in Crosby were committed by a person well known to the victim in the last five years; and what proportion of the total number of murders in Crosby during this period this represents. [129474]
Ms Blears: The data have been obtained from the homicide index as it stood on 8 October 2002. Figures are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and the courts, or as further information becomes available.
Information is held centrally in the form of homicide (i.e. murder, manslaughter and infanticide) by police force area. Therefore, figures can only be provided for Merseyside Police Force Area as a whole.
| 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total victims | 24 | 28 | 20 | 30 | 28 |
| Victim acquainted with suspect | 16 | 19 | 10 | 15 | 16 |
| Proportion where victim acquainted with suspect | 67 | 68 | 50 | 50 | 57 |
| Proportion England and Wales | 63 | 62 | 54 | 54 | 49 |
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the clear-up rate for murders committed in Crosby was in each of the last five years. [129475]
Ms Blears: The data have been obtained from the homicide index as it stood on 8 October 2002. Figures are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and the courts, or as further information becomes available. Revisions to the data will particularly affect the numbers detected in the most recent years as longer cases are solved.
Information is held centrally in the form of homicide (ie murder, manslaughter and infanticide) by police force area. Therefore, figures can be provided only for Merseyside Police Force Area as a whole.
Currently recorded homicide by Merseyside Police:
| 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total victims | 24 | 28 | 20 | 30 | 28 |
| Victims with no current suspect | 4 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 7 |
| Detection rate (percentage) | 83 | 89 | 90 | 77 | 75 |
Crime Statistics
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many murders there were in Romford in each of the last 10 years; [128362]
- (2) how many burglaries were committed in Romford in each year since 1997; [128402]
(3) if he will make a statement on crime statistics in Romford in (a) 2002 and (b) each of the preceding 10 years; [128382]
(4) how many car thefts there were in (a) Romford and (b) other London boroughs in 2002; [128363]
(5) if he will make a statement on the level of assaults in Romford in 2002; [128372]
(6) how many incidents of arson there were in Romford in (a) 2002 and (b) each of the preceding 10 years; [128377]
(7) if he will make a statement on the level of stabbings in (a) Romford and (b) other London boroughs in 2002; [128378]
(8) how many rape offences there were in (a) Romford and (b) the London borough of Havering in each of the past 10 years. [128404]
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Ms Blears: Recorded crime statistics below police force area level are collected on a basic command unit (BCU) basis. Figures at BCU level for England and Wales are available for six key offences for the financial years 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02 and 2002–03. The area of Romford is included within the Metropolitan police BCU of Havering.
The six key offences recorded are violence against the person (total), sexual offences (total), robbery, burglary in a dwelling, theft of a motor vehicle and theft from a vehicle. At BCU level, numbers of murders, assaults, shoplifting , arson, stabbings and rape offences are not available centrally. The available figures are given in the table.
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| Offence | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03(12) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence against the person | 2,661 | 2,787 | 3,225 | 3,901 |
| Sexual offences | 145 | 158 | 173 | 178 |
| Robbery | 240 | 392 | 549 | 479 |
| Burglary in a dwelling | 837 | 897 | 1,109 | 1,058 |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 1,749 | 1,842 | 1,883 | 1,654 |
| Theft from a vehicle | 2,120 | 2,143 | 2,374 | 2,230 |
(12) The Metropolitan police introduced the National Crime Recording Standard on 1 April 2002. This may have caused the large increase in violence against the person offences for 2002–03.
Numbers of car thefts (theft of a motor vehicle and theft from a vehicle) for all the basic command units within the London region for 2002–03 are given in the table.
| Basic command unit | Police force | Theft of a motor vehicle, offences recorded 2002–03 | Theft from a vehicle, offences recorded 2002–03 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishopsgate(13) | London, City of | 202 | 191 |
| Snowhill(13) | London, City of | 132 | 169 |
| Barking and Dagenham | Metropolitan Police | 1,489 | 1,678 |
| Barnet | Metropolitan Police | 1,801 | 3,239 |
| Bexley | Metropolitan Police | 1,455 | 2,022 |
| Brent | Metropolitan Police | 1,747 | 2,897 |
| Bromley | Metropolitan Police | 2,095 | 3,339 |
| Camden | Metropolitan Police | 1,919 | 7,139 |
| City of Westminster | Metropolitan Police | 1,464 | 4,582 |
| Croydon | Metropolitan Police | 2,341 | 3,352 |
| Ealing | Metropolitan Police | 2,484 | 5,925 |
| Enfield | Metropolitan Police | 2,033 | 3,198 |
| Greenwich | Metropolitan Police | 2,370 | 3,293 |
| Hackney | Metropolitan Police | 2,495 | 4,911 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | Metropolitan Police | 1,130 | 4,476 |
| Haringey | Metropolitan Police | 2,449 | 4,067 |
| Harrow | Metropolitan Police | 1,025 | 2,085 |
| Havering | Metropolitan Police | 1,654 | 2,230 |
| Heathrow | Metropolitan Police | 61 | 309 |
| Hillingdon | Metropolitan Police | 1,632 | 3,689 |
| Hounslow | Metropolitan Police | 1,487 | 3,751 |
| Islington | Metropolitan Police | 2,351 | 5,003 |
| Kensington and Chelsea | Metropolitan Police | 1,066 | 3,185 |
| Kingston upon Thames | Metropolitan Police | 437 | 938 |
| Lambeth | Metropolitan Police | 2,648 | 5,272 |
| Lewisham | Metropolitan Police | 1,986 | 2,420 |
| Merton | Metropolitan Police | 938 | 1,512 |
| Newham | Metropolitan Police | 3,657 | 5,005 |
| Redbridge | Metropolitan Police | 1,981 | 3,615 |
| Richmond upon Thames | Metropolitan Police | 615 | 1,740 |
| Southwark | Metropolitan Police | 2,659 | 4,988 |
| Sutton | Metropolitan Police | 822 | 1,577 |
| Tower Hamlets | Metropolitan Police | 2,260 | 6,026 |
| Waltham Forest | Metropolitan Police | 2,217 | 3,818 |
| Wandsworth | Metropolitan Police | 1,637 | 3,706 |
(13) The City of London has a small resident population but provides policing services to between 3–400,000 commuters and visitors each weekday. Performance measures based on crime per 1,000 resident population produce an unrealistic picture of a high level of crime, which does not reflect the likelihood of becoming a victim of crime in the City.Note:Crimes recorded by the Metropolitan police's special operations unit have not been included in this table.
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