asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any information to suggest there has been an increasing incidence of interference with jurors in recent years, and that this practice is related in any way to the previous convictions of any jurors who have been contacted.

In the last year at the central criminal court, five trials have been stopped following interference with jurors, and in eight other cases reports of attempted interference have been made. Some of the jurors contacted had previous convictions. Comparable figures for earlier years are not readily available but are thought to be lower.