Fire Safety (Hmos)

Mr. Ruane

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fires occurred in houses in multiple occupation in the years 1990 to 1996; and how many (a) deaths and (b) injuries resulted from these fires. [4732]

The available information on dwellings for 1990 to 1995 is given in the tables, copies of which have been placed in the Library. The data for 1994 and 1995 do not reliably identify houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) from other types of dwelling. A more detailed analysis of fires in multiple occupied dwellings in the United Kingdom was published in pages 30–33 of "Fire Statistics, United Kingdom, 1993", a copy of which is in the Library. The enforcement of fire safety precautions in HMOs is a policy responsibility of the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions. His Department is currently funding a research study looking in depth at the incidence and causes of fire death in HMOs. It is hoped to publish the report later this year.

Fires^1,2 and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1995
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non fatal casualties
England and Wales	19,992	152	4,289
England	19,203	147	4,087
England: Non-Met counties	7,515	60	1,716
Avon	402	0	49
Bedfordshire	145	2	29
Berkshire	214	2	37
Buckinghamshire	224	0	12
Cambridgeshire	114	2	31
Cheshire	272	2	67
Cleveland	202	0	60
Cornwall	61	3	11
Cumbria	129	0	16
Derbyshire	122	2	59
Devon	381	1	95
Dorset	187	5	29
Durham	83	1	16
East Sussex	475	5	107
Essex	269	3	61
Gloucestershire	108	1	32
Hampshire	418	1	94
Hereford and Worcester	128	1	22
Hertfordshire	199	2	36
Humberside	264	4	70
Isle of Wight	44	0	10
Kent	327	2	94
Lancashire	721	6	165
Leicestershire	159	2	30
Lincolnshire	56	1	17
Norfolk	164	0	34
North Yorkshire	99	1	24
Northamptonshire	137	3	38
Northumberland	25	0	5
Nottinghamshire	269	1	86
Oxfordshire	142	0	41
Shropshire	67	0	23
Somerset	69	1	15
Staffordshire	189	1	49
Suffolk	165	4	29
Surrey	149	1	44
Warwickshire	93	0	11
West Sussex	174	0	39
Wiltshire	69	0	29

Fires^1,2 and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1995
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England: Met counties	11,688	87	2,371
Greater Manchester	1,474	10	477
Merseyside	917	4	337
South Yorkshire	520	3	53
Tyne and Wear	773	2	201
West Midlands	2,145	9	287
West Yorkshire	913	7	225
Greater London	4,946	52	791
Wales	790	5	202
Clwyd	96	1	52
Dyfed	95	0	13
Gwent	89	0	25
Gwynedd	49	0	10
Mid Glamorgan	117	1	35
Powys	18	0	3
South Glamorgan	193	2	43
West Glamorgan	132	1	21
¹ Including additional late call and heat and smoke damage incidents (not recorded prior to 1994). Figures are rounded and the components do not necessarily sum to the independently rounded totals.
² Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Fires^1,2 and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1994
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England and Wales	19,836	123	4,052
England	19,107	121	3,863
England: Non-Met counties	7,404	42	1,631
Avon	452	2	63
Bedfordshire	124	1	40
Berkshire	158	0	46
Buckinghamshire	259	1	14
Cambridgeshire	127	0	26
Cheshire	225	1	35
Cleveland	191	0	25
Cornwall	56	0	16
Cumbria	166	2	29
Derbyshire	157	1	57
Devon	388	0	86
Dorset	161	1	44
Durham	65	0	17
East Sussex	468	2	88
Essex	288	0	77
Gloucestershire	80	1	27
Hampshire	379	4	116
Hereford and Worcester	145	0	27
Hertfordshire	194	3	37
Humberside	316	3	48
Isle of Wight	50	0	4
Kent	328	4	74
Lancashire	594	1	126
Leicestershire	158	0	35
Lincolnshire	84	1	14
Norfolk	180	0	47
North Yorkshire	101	2	35
Northamptonshire	123	2	29
Northumberland	57	0	9
Nottinghamshire	311	2	60
Oxfordshire	130	2	50
Shropshire	104	1	18
Somerset	39	1	6

Fires^1,2 and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1994
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
Staffordshire	227	0	38
Suffolk	129	0	26
Surrey	211	4	50
Warwickshire	61	0	31
West Sussex	95	0	44
Wiltshire	21	0	17
England: Met counties	11,703	79	2,232
Greater Manchester	1,426	13	416
Merseyside	855	5	279
South Yorkshire	605	2	92
Tyne and Wear	767	5	177
West Midlands	2,279	10	329
West Yorkshire	988	2	178
Greater London	4,783	42	761
Wales	728	2	189
Clwyd	96	0	37
Dyfed	101	0	12
Gwent	88	0	23
Gwynedd	72	0	15
Mid Glamorgan	100	1	24
Powys	14	0	3
South Glamorgan	119	1	53
West Glamorgan	137	0	22
¹ Including additional late call and heat and smoke damage incidents (not recorded prior to 1994). Figures are rounded and the components do not necessarily sum to the independently rounded totals.
² Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Fires^1,2 and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1993
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England and Wales	20,194	118	3,821
England	19,496	113	3,649
England: Non-Met counties	7,121	45	1,396
Avon	371	3	72
Bedfordshire	127	2	14
Berkshire	152	2	23
Buckinghamshire	197	1	11
Cambridgeshire	109	1	37
Cheshire	255	1	44
Cleveland	171	3	36
Cornwall	68	0	15
Cumbria	157	1	15
Derbyshire	139	0	43
Devon	332	1	82
Dorset	144	1	27
Durham	97	0	26
East Sussex	361	2	63
Essex	250	2	60
Gloucestershire	103	0	15
Hampshire	310	2	58
Hereford and Worcester	115	0	27
Hertfordshire	189	0	29
Humberside	287	0	55
Isle of Wight	49	1	4
Kent	336	2	53
Lancashire	587	4	126
Leicestershire	196	2	41
Lincolnshire	81	0	26
Norfolk	171	1	39

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1993
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
North Yorkshire	136	0	23
Northamptonshire	121	0	25
Northumberland	62	2	11
Nottinghamshire	303	0	58
Oxfordshire	106	1	8
Shropshire	58	0	5
Somerset	74	3	10
Staffordshire	218	1	65
Suffolk	161	0	18
Surrey	179	2	69
Warwickshire	98	1	I1
West Sussex	164	3	40
Wiltshire	87	0	12
England: Met counties	12,375	68	2,253
Greater Manchester	1,664	7	510
Merseyside	944	2	272
South Yorkshire	607	3	85
Tyne and Wear	731	6	161
West Midlands	2,425	8	266
West Yorkshire	802	6	188
Greater London	5,202	36	771
Wales	698	5	172
Clwyd	76	0	12
Dyfed	58	2	25
Gwent	98	0	23
Gwynedd	70	0	18
Mid Glamorgan	116	2	30
Powys	8	0	1
South Glamorgan	154	1	30
West Glamorgan	118	0	33
¹ Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1992
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England and Wales	19,407	175	3,860
England	18,746	169	3,708
England: Non-Met counties	6,813	58	1,495
Avon	361	1	50
Bedfordshire	125	4	17
Berkshire	163	2	39
Buckinghamshire	118	0	19
Cambridgeshire	94	1	16
Cheshire	200	1	34
Cleveland	174	2	41
Cornwall	80	2	17
Cumbria	161	0	22
Derbyshire	131	3	36
Devon	324	0	73
Dorset	175	3	52
Durham	73	1	12
East Sussex	419	7	111
Essex	276	3	78
Gloucestershire	109	0	32
Hampshire	341	2	72
Hereford and Worcester	131	0	19
Hertfordshire	181	1	18
Humberside	293	2	69
Isle of Wight	48	0	12
Kent	339	2	80
Lancashire	540	3	137

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1992
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
Leicestershire	166	2	27
Lincolnshire	68	1	27
Norfolk	119	2	27
North Yorkshire	133	1	27
Northamptonshire	122	1	21
Northumberland	42	1	6
Nottinghamshire	276	3	60
Oxfordshire	115	1	34
Shropshire	65	0	10
Somerset	67	1	18
Staffordshire	178	1	51
Suffolk	147	0	16
Surrey	156	0	42
Warwickshire	92	1	14
West Sussex	139	0	37
Wiltshire	72	3	22
England: Met counties	11,933	111	2,213
Greater Manchester	1,675	12	454
Merseyside	863	8	245
South Yorkshire	565	3	78
Tyne and Wear	718	5	170
West Midlands	2,301	13	289
West Yorkshire	729	4	146
Greater London	5,082	66	831
Wales	661	6	152
Clwyd	85	1	35
Dyfed	66	1	19
Gwent	92	0	16
Gwynedd	57	1	9
Mid Glamorgan	96	0	17
Powys	13	0	1
South Glamorgan	162	2	35
West Glamorgan	90	1	20
¹ Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1991
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England and Wales	18,687	142	3,731
England	18,054	133	3,566
England: Non-Met counties	6,438	35	1,320
Avon	379	3	74
Bedfordshire	125	1	21
Berkshire	137	1	48
Buckinghamshire	149	1	21
Cambridgeshire	111	1	38
Cheshire	226	1	38
Cleveland	140	0	26
Cornwall	66	1	19
Cumbria	109	1	17
Derbyshire	127	0	32
Devon	313	0	53
Dorset	159	0	36
Durham	77	0	17
East Sussex	351	6	60
Essex	257	2	71
Gloucestershire	127	0	18
Hampshire	308	0	57
Hereford and Worcester	130	1	30
Hertfordshire	161	2	20
Humberside	306	1	63

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1991
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
Isle of Wight	48	0	6
Kent	320	1	54
Lancashire	473	3	84
Leicestershire	145	1	20
Lincolnshire	55	0	16
Norfolk	125	0	34
North Yorkshire	121	0	18
Northamptonshire	116	0	27
Northumberland	39	0	9
Nottinghamshire	305	3	65
Oxfordshire	100	0	25
Shropshire	70	2	4
Somerset	45	0	2
Staffordshire	179	0	67
Suffolk	121	0	11
Surrey	149	1	56
Warwickshire	90	0	32
West Sussex	110	2	20
Wiltshire	69	0	11
England: Met counties	11,616	98	2,246
Greater Manchester	1,798	14	505
Merseyside	882	4	260
South Yorkshire	446	3	75
Tyne and Wear	672	4	170
West Midlands	1,944	18	237
West Yorkshire	737	4	174
Greater London	5,137	51	825
Wales	633	9	165
Clwyd	93	1	25
Dyfed	47	0	11
Gwent	77	2	17
Gwynedd	59	0	12
Mid Glamorgan	103	2	37
Powys	10	0	0
South Glamorgan	176	4	50
West Glamorgan	68	0	13
¹Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1990
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
England and Wales	18,288	165	3,472
England	17,735	162	3,341
England: Non-Met counties	5,981	68	1,251
Avon	295	3	43
Bedfordshire	101	1	21
Berkshire	157	2	11
Buckinghamshire	108	3	23
Cambridgeshire	83	1	10
Cheshire	228	2	38
Cleveland	128	1	32
Cornwall	68	0	18
Cumbria	89	2	15
Derbyshire	105	1	30
Devon	292	3	85
Dorset	139	3	33
Durham	59	0	15
East Sussex	313	9	71
Essex	269	4	73
Gloucestershire	105	0	22
Hampshire	319	3	44

Fires¹ and casualties in multiple occupancy dwellings by brigade area, UK 1990
	Multiple occupancy dwellings
	Fires	Fatalities	Non-fatal casualties
Hereford and Worcester	127	0	19
Hertfordshire	181	1	46
Humberside	293	4	65
Isle of Wight	44	0	1
Kent	272	4	42
Lancashire	437	4	96
Leicestershire	151	1	29
Lincolnshire	47	0	13
Norfolk	113	2	37
North Yorkshire	123	2	23
Northamptonshire	122	0	28
Northumberland	40	0	8
Nottinghamshire	285	1	46
Oxfordshire	130	0	28
Shropshire	49	0	8
Somerset	47	0	7
Staffordshire	129	1	32
Suffolk	98	0	16
Surrey	156	4	50
Warwickshire	89	2	20
West Sussex	143	4	32
Wiltshire	47	0	21
England: Met counties	11,754	94	2,090
Greater Manchester	1,746	12	428
Merseyside	703	5	215
South Yorkshire	410	1	70
Tyne and Wear	767	4	187
West Midlands	2,056	9	240
West Yorkshire	717	9	159
Greater London	5,355	54	791
Wales	553	3	131
Clwyd	68	0	28
Dyfed	41	0	6
Gwent	74	1	20
Gwynedd	69	0	5
Mid Glamorgan	88	1	15
Powys	15	0	7
South Glamorgan	141	1	42
West Glamorgan	57	0	8
¹Excluding fires confined to chimneys.

Volume 296: debated on Thursday 26 June 1997