Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, how many people were (a) prosecuted for and (b) convicted of offences under the Wild Animals (Protection) Act 1996 in each police force area in England in 2015.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of people who have been charged with, and prosecuted for, offences brought by way of the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Although it is not possible to identify the number of people charged with particular offences, records are held showing the overall number of offences in which a prosecution commenced in the magistrates’ courts. In 2015 there was one offence commenced under the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996.