Crime Levels.

Wednesday, 5 April 2006

Ceisteanna (235)

Billy Timmins

Ceist:

245 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of crimes recorded and detected across all headings in Wicklow-Wexford Garda division during 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13736/06]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the following table provides the total number of headline offences, by group, recorded and detected in the Garda division of Wicklow-Wexford for the years 2000-05 inclusive.

The introduction of the PULSE computer system by the Garda Síochána in 1999 has led to more complete and comprehensive recording of crimes reported than was previously the case. Consequently the statistics provided for 1997 are not comparable to statistics provided for 2000 and subsequent years.

The figures provided for 2000 and 2001 are incomplete due to the phased implementation of PULSE. The first full year captured is 2002 and is a more accurate base year to use.

Any interpretation of the crime figures should factor in the increase in our population in the past ten years. In 1995, with a population of almost 3.6 million people, there were 29 crimes per 1,000 of the population. In 2005, with a population of over 4.1 million, there were 24.6 crimes per 1,000 of the population, a reduction of 4.4 crimes per 1,000 of the population. To put this in context, during the two full years of the rainbow coalition Government, with a population of 600,000 fewer than at present, the headline crime figures were as follows: 1995, 102,484; 1996, 100,785.

It should also be noted that the headline offence of homicide includes not only murder and manslaughter but the other homicide offences of infanticide, abortion, attempted murder and threat to murder. Over the six year period shown in the table there were five murders recorded with four detected, and five manslaughters recorded with five detected.

Headline Offences Recorded and Detected for the Garda Division of Wicklow/Wexford for the years 2000 to 2005

	2005*	2004	2003	2002	2001	2000
	Rec	Det	Rec	Det	Rec	Det	Rec	Det	Rec	Det	Rec	Det
Homicide	4	3	2	2	0	0	1	1	1	1	5	5
Assault	128	94	154	118	144	118	185	152	106	90	58	53
Sexual Offences	98	52	76	41	80	50	105	64	86	67	43	33
Arson	28	9	22	6	24	6	37	15	25	7	30	12
Drugs	114	114	66	66	61	60	59	58	53	53	55	55
Theft	1,758	757	1,715	616	1,765	577	1,825	597	1,276	516	1,014	397
Burglary	1,336	239	1,197	159	1,165	234	1,144	194	1,010	248	999	298
Robbery	33	12	40	19	31	16	39	10	38	21	27	17
Fraud	211	172	133	90	167	108	133	90	131	114	173	158
Other	62	49	71	57	47	34	64	49	27	23	9	9
Total	3,772	1,501	3,476	1,174	3,484	1,203	3,592	1,230	2,753	1,140	2,413	1,037

* Figures provided are provisional, operational and liable to change.