Protection of Badgers Act 1992
(asked on 18th June 2015) - View Source
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people were (a) proceeded against and (b) convicted of an offence under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 in 2014.
The Government is committed to tackling crimes against wildlife. The UK National Wildlife Crime Unit, which is part-funded by Defra, monitors and gathers intelligence on illegal activities, including those relating to badger persecution and poaching, which are UK wildlife crime priorities. The Unit also provides assistance to police forces when required.
The number of persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, in England and Wales, in 2014, can be viewed in table 1.
The number of persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences under the Deer Act 1991, in England and Wales, in 2014, can be viewed in table 2.
No proceedings were brought to court for offences under the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 in 2014.
Table 1
Number of persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992(1), England and Wales, 2014(2)(3) | ||
Proceeded against | Found guilty | |
England and Wales | 25 | 18 |
(1) Includes all Sections under Protection of Badgers Act 1992 (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice.
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Table 2
Number of persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for offences under the Deer Act 1991(1), England and Wales, 2014(2) (3) | ||
Proceeded against | Found guilty | |
England and Wales | 2 | - |
(1) Includes all Sections under Deer Act 1991 (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice.
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