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Arrests

Volume 506: debated on Tuesday 23 February 2010

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests were made by police officers in each year since 1999; and what the average number of arrests per police officer was in each such year. (317641)

The requested data are published annually in the Home Office Statistical Bulletins “Police Powers and Procedures” and “Police Service Strength”. The latest editions are available online and all editions are available in the Library of the House. A table is, however, provided for the Member’s convenience.

It should be noted that the data provided on arrests covers arrests for notifiable offences only, which account for only a proportion of arrests made by police officers. Information on all arrests is not collected centrally.

Number of arrests for notifiable offences and officer strength 1999-2000 to 2007-08

Year1

Number of arrests for notifiable offences2

Number of police officers3

Number of arrests for notifiable offences per police officer

1999-2000

1,277,900

124,170

10.3

2000-01

1,264,200

125,682

10.1

2001-02

1,271,900

129,603

9.8

2002-03

1,313,100

133,366

9.8

2003-04

1,330,400

139,200

9.6

2004-05

1,353,400

141,230

9.6

2005-06

1,429,800

141,381

10.1

2006-07

1,482,200

140,514

10.5

2007-08

1,475,300

140,230

10.5

1 Arrests data are not available prior to 1999-2000. Data for arrests in 2008-09 will be published in April 2010.

2 The Home Office Arrests collection only covers arrests for notifiable offences only, data on arrests for non-notifiable offences are not reported to the Home Office. Data are rounded to the nearest hundred.

3 Full-time equivalent officer strength figures are provided, including officers on central service secondments. In order to make like-for-like comparisons with earlier years data excludes officers on career breaks, maternity and paternity leave. Strength at the end of each given financial year is provided.