Statistics collated centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the criminal offences under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 do not separately identify perpetrators prosecuted, convicted or sentenced to crimes involving sexual harassment, or the location of where the offence took place.

Collating such information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of stalking offences reported to and recorded by the police in England and Wales and how many of these have resulted in a charge/summons. These statistics are victim-based and data, for each year since 2013, can be found in police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables

Figures for prosecutions, convictions and custodial sentences for the offences of stalking involving fear of violence and stalking involving serious alarm/distress are available by selecting the offences in the ‘detailed offence’ field from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) published experimental data here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/738814/HO-Code-Tool-2017.xlsx

The MoJ statistics are based on defendants prosecuted in each time period and may relate to crimes recorded by the police in a previous reporting period due to the time-lag between cases being initially recorded by the police and then brought before the courts.

The Government re-committed in our manifesto that we will extend the scope of the unduly lenient scheme. As a first step, an extension of the scheme to further terrorism offences came into effect in August.

We are considering with the Lord Chancellor how further to fulfil our commitment to extending the scheme.

The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of offences under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, who were also made the subject of a Restraining Order, in England and Wales in 2015 can be viewed in the table attached.

The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates’ courts and offenders found guilty at all courts of the offences requested under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, in 2015 can be viewed in the table attached.

Charging data is not held by the Ministry of Justice.

The information requested is available in the criminal justice systems quarterly statistics on GOV.UK.

Neither of these offences are covered under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme and therefore the Law Officers have no power to refer sentences for these offences to the Court of Appeal.

The Government has committed to extending the scope of the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme and is carefully considering its approach.

The number of offenders sentenced at all courts, with sentencing outcomes and custody rate, for stalking offences, in England and Wales, from 2012 to 2014, can be viewed at

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014

The published information includes small numbers of prosecutions and convictions for this offence before the offence was introduced. This is due to an error in data collection and should be ignored. Also, please note that 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.

The number of offenders sentenced at all courts in England and Wales for stalking offences specifically under Section 2A and Section 4A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, with the number of offenders sentenced to the maximum custodial sentences permissible, from 2012 to 2014, can be viewed in Table 1.

Specific details of individual prison sentences, such as whether they included a therapeutic component, and information regarding the location in which an offence occurs in (i.e. in a domestic setting or otherwise) are not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The Crown Prosecution Service is committed to taking into account the mental health condition of an offender when considering bringing a prosecution. Each case is considered on its merits, taking into account all available information about any mental health issues, and their relevance to the offence, in accordance with the principles set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code).

The Code explains that there is a balance to be struck between the public interest in diverting a defendant with significant mental illness from the criminal justice system and other public interest factors in favour of prosecution, including the need to safeguard the public.

The police and Crown Prosecution Service work together to take decisions on whether to pursue a prosecution under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, applying the evidential and public interest tests set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. The Code provides that prosecutors should have regard to whether the suspect is, or was at the time of the offence, suffering from any mental or ill health as, in some circumstances, this may mean that it is less likely that a prosecution is required.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of defendants prosecuted for offences brought by way of the Communications Act 2003, the Malicious Communications Act 1988 and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

However, information is held identifying the number of offences during the past five years in which a prosecution commenced and reached a first hearing at magistrates’ courts, rather than the number of defendants prosecuted, this is detailed in the following table.

There is no indication of the final prosecution outcome, of if the charged offence was the substantive charge at the time of finalisation. It is also often the case that an individual defendant is charged with more than one offence.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record to show the number of prosecutions involving defendants prosecuted specifically for criminal activity on-line. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

The Government is absolutely clear that abusive or threatening behaviour, stalking or harassment, are totally unacceptable, whether online or offline. A number of offences may be committed by misusing the internet or social media in this way, in particular under section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 or section 127 of the Communications Act 2003. Changes to the law in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill will help to ensure that people who commit those offences are prosecuted and properly punished.

Stalking causes misery for victims. That is why in 2012 we added to the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 two new specific offences of stalking (section 2A) and stalking involving fear of violence or serious alarm or distress (section 4A), the latter of which is punishable by up to five years in prison, or a fine, or both. Online stalking or harassment could amount to one of these offences if it is carried out as part of a ‘course of conduct’ which amounts to stalking, and could amount to the more serious offence if that course of conduct puts someone in fear of violence, or if it causes them serious alarm or distress which has a substantial adverse effect on their usual day-to-day activities

The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts and found

guilty at all courts for offences relating to the Computer Misuse Act 1990,

from 1990 to 2013 (latest data available), can be viewed in the table.

Information held centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the Court Proceedings Database does not include the circumstances behind each case beyond the description provided in the statute. It is not possible to separately identify from this centrally held information convictions and sentences involving the use or misuse of social media, or cyber crime. This detailed information may be held on the court record but due to the size and complexity is not reported centrally to the MoJ. As such, the information requested can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Court proceedings data for 2014 are planned for publication in May 2015.

The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 created two new offences of stalking by inserting new sections 2A and 4A into the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. The new offences, which are not retrospective, came into force on the 25^th of November 2012 and provide further options for prosecutors to consider when selecting charges. Between the introduction of the new stalking offences on the 25^th of November 2012 and the end of September 2014, Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) data for stalking offences charged by prosecutors shows a steady rise. It is not possible to determine with certainty the impact that the stalking offences have had on the number of other offences charged under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

Figures for the number of stalking and harassment charges that reached a first hearing at Magistrates’ Courts are set out in the table below:

Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System

Notes:

1. Whilst there is no strict legal definition of 'stalking', section 2A (3) of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 sets out examples of acts or omissions which, in particular circumstances, are ones associated with stalking. These include: following, contacting, or attempting to contact a person by any means (this may be through friends, work colleagues, family or technology); or, other intrusions into the victim's privacy such as loitering in a particular place or watching or spying on a person. The effect of such behaviour is to curtail a victim's freedom, leaving them feeling that they constantly have to be watchful. In many cases, the conduct might appear innocent (if it were to be taken in isolation), but when carried out repeatedly so as to amount to a course of conduct, it may then cause significant alarm, harassment or distress to the victim.

2. The table of data indicates the volume of offences charged in which a prosecution commenced at magistrates’ courts for offences of harassment. No information is held as to the number of individual defendants prosecuted, or details related to these individuals. It is often the case that an individual defendant is charged with more than one offence against the same victim.