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Written question asked by Steve Webb (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 31 October 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 2 November 2005. It was answered by Fiona Mactaggart (Labour) on Thursday, 17 November 2005 on behalf of the Home Office.

Protection from Harassment Act

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many times the powers under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 have been used to prevent an individual from contacting a spouse or partner in each year since the Act came into force; what standard of proof is required before such powers are exercised; and if he will make a statement;
Answer

The available information from the Home Office Court Proceedings database on the number of restraining orders made under section 5 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 up to 2004 is contained in table one.The available information from the Department for Constitutional Affairs County Court Statistics Module Database on the estimated number of injunctions granted under section 3 of the Act, 1998 to 2005, is contained in table two. (The number is estimated because there is no specific reference to section three of the Act within the dataset.) It is not possible to identify those orders or injunctions that were intended to prevent contact with a partner or spouse, as information about the purpose of such orders and injunctions is not centrally collected. Both restraining orders made under section 5 of the Act and civil injunctions granted under section three are civil orders.Both orders are preventative rather than punitive and are intended to give protection to victims. In determining whether a restraining order is necessary, the criminal court will apply a civil standard of proof. If a civil court is satisfied on a balance of probabilities that harassment has taken place or is anticipated, then it may grant an injunction.

Protection from Harassment Act 1997
Injunctions granted
1998 374
1999 390
2000 283
2001 433
2002 482
2003 761
2004 354
2005 (to September 2005) 482
Defendants given a restraining order, principal andnon-principal, 1997–2004
Crown court Magistrates court All courts
1997 0 1 1
1998 38 822 860
1999 146 1,290 1,436
2000 59 1,559 1,618
2001 3 1,602 1,605
2002 127 1,807 1,934
2003 520 1,947 2,467
2004 602 2,204 2,806
Source: RDS-NOMS

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
439 c1433-5W;439 c1437-9W; 24524
Session
2005-06
Subjects
Evidence Harassment Injunctions Married people
Legislation
Protection from Harassment Act 1997
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk