The Home Office collects and publishes data on arrests as part of the annual \u2018Police Powers and Procedures\u2019 statistical bulletin. The most recent data up to the year ending March 2023 is available here: Police powers and procedures England and Wales statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)<\/a><\/p> However, the data is collected by broader offence group e.g. \u201cviolence against the person\u201d, therefore data on more specific offences such as online harassment is not available.<\/p> The number of harassment and stalking offences reported to police which were flagged as online crime is available in table F11 of the \u2018Crime in England and Wales: Other related tables\u2019 dataset:<\/p> Crime in England and Wales: Other related tables - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)<\/a><\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4503", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Chris Philp"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Croydon South"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Chris Philp"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2024-05-20", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2024-05-20T15:45:30.367Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2024-05-13", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Harassment: Internet"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of arrests for online harassment in the last 12 months.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4131", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Jim Shannon"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Strangford"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Jim Shannon"}
], "uin" : "25855"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1715993", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Home Office"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1715993/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " Since 2010 our communities are safer, with neighbourhood crimes including burglary, robbery and theft from the person down 48% and overall violent crime down 44%, and more police officers on the streets than in 2010.<\/p> However, there has been a worrying rise in shoplifting and violence towards retail workers, which we are taking action to address. The Government\u2019s plan \u2013 "Fighting Retail Crime: more action"<\/a> was launched on 10 April. It includes a new standalone offence for assaults on retail workers, which will be introduced via the Criminal Justice Bill, currently before Parliament.. We are working with police and businesses to roll out the latest facial recognition to catch these perpetrators; championing good practice to design out crime; and making it easier for retailers to report crime.<\/p> We will also legislate through the Criminal Justice Bill, to introduce a presumption towards electronic monitoring as part of a sentence served in the community for those who repeatedly steal from shops.<\/p>
Calendar Year<\/p><\/td> | Number of Shoplifting offences<\/p><\/td><\/tr> |
2021<\/p><\/td> | 256,199<\/p><\/td><\/tr> |
2022<\/p><\/td> | 315,040<\/p><\/td><\/tr> |
2023<\/p><\/td> | 430,104<\/p><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table> Source: ONS Crime in England and Wales: year ending December 2023, Appendix Table A4.<\/em><\/p> There must be a zero tolerance approach to such crime which is why, alongside key partners, this Government is taking concerted action to address the menace of retail crime. The Government\u2019s plan \u2013 "Fighting retail crime: more action" was launched on 10 April, and highlights five areas of work this Government will drive forward to tackle retail crime:<\/p> No specific assessment on trends in convictions for drug offences as a result of policy changes has been made, but the Government takes the matter of harmful drugs very seriously. Our approach to them remains clear - we must prevent drug misuse in our communities and support people through treatment and recovery.<\/p> The police have a range of powers at their disposal to deal with drug-related offences, such as illegal possession, and how police choose to pursue investigations is an operational decision for Chief Constables, but we are clear that we expect them to enforce the law. We expect police to take a zero tolerance approach to drug possession, and this can include sanctions other than prosecution. This includes referrals to treatment, as well as sanctions to make offenders understand the impact of their actions and opportunities for them to change their behaviour. However, we are clear prosecution remains an option to deal with repeat offenders.<\/p> We keep the classification of drugs under review. Ministers are subject to a statutory obligation to consider advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), an independent scientific advisory body, before making legislation on the classification of drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Legislative changes are accompanied by a robust impact assessment where we set out the potential impacts of such changes.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4503", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Chris Philp"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Croydon South"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Chris Philp"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2024-05-08", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2024-05-08T15:25:44.277Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2024-04-30", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Drugs: Crime"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of trends in the number of convictions for class (a) A and (b) B drug possession in the last five years.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4131", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Jim Shannon"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Strangford"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Jim Shannon"}
], "uin" : "24237"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1712661", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Home Office"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1712661/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " We continue a high level of cooperation on border security with Ireland; working closely together to identify and tackle those who seek to abuse arrangements from entering the Common Travel Area.<\/p> Schedule 3 to the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 allows a Counter-Terrorism Police Officer to stop, question and, when necessary, detain and search, individuals and goods travelling through UK ports and the \u201cborder area\u201d for the purpose of determining whether the person (or the goods) appears to be someone who is, or has been, engaged in hostile activity.<\/p> In Northern Ireland, a place is within the \u201cborder area\u201d if it is no more than one mile from the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland or it is the first place at which a train travelling from the Republic of Ireland stops to let passengers off.<\/p> Individuals who seek to abuse the Common Travel Area arrangements are liable to be detained, and if unlawfully entering the UK, removed.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4462", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Tom Tugendhat"}
}
, "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Tonbridge and Malling"}
, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Tom Tugendhat"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2024-04-30", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2024-04-30T14:25:09.053Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
]}
, "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"}
, "date" : {"_value" : "2024-04-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Immigration Controls: Republic of Ireland"}
, "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"}
, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
}
], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the border between the UK and Republic of Ireland is secure against the passage malign foreign actors.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4131", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Jim Shannon"}
}
, "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Strangford"}
, "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Jim Shannon"}
], "uin" : "22945"}
, {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1700795", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Home Office"}
], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1700795/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : " The Home Office collects and publishes data annually on the number of police officers leaving the police service and their reasons for leaving, including medical retirements, as at 31 March each year, in the \u2018Police Workforce, England and Wales\u2019 statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales<\/a>.<\/p> |