To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persistent and prolific offenders have been identified in (a) total and (b) each police force area in each of the last five years. (317767)

The information requested is set out in the table. This shows the total number of offenders, by police force area, who were classified as prolific and other priority offenders in each of the years since the prolific and other priority offender programme was launched in September 2004. The table shows the total number of offenders who had been classified during each full 12-month period. Some offenders would have been classified as prolific and other priority offenders during the course of the years shown, and others de-classified during the years shown, in accordance with local selection and de-selection criteria. At any given time, the total number of offenders classified as prolific and other priority offenders across England and Wales is between 10,000 and 11,000 offenders.

The published evaluation of the prolific and other priority offender programme in 2004 showed that the offenders first taken on to the programme in September and October 2004 reduced their convictions by 62 per cent. over their first 17 months on the programme.