Number of ASBOs issued by all courts, 2004 and 2005
In England and Wales, 4,060 Anti-social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) were issued in 2005, over 18 per cent more than the previous year. In Scotland, 205 civil ASBOs were issued, an increase of 60 per cent between 2003/04 and 2004/05. For the first time since their introduction in 1999, the number of ASBOs issued fell in 2005 in the South East and the South West. The highest number of ASBOs were issued in the North West and the lowest in the South West (879 and 204 respectively).
Across England and Wales, the rate of men aged 18 or over found guilty of offences in 2005 was four times higher than that of women aged 18 and over (55 men per 1,000 population compared with 12 for women). Of the four countries, Northern Ireland had the lowest rates (35 and 5 respectively per 1,000 population). The highest rates were seen in Wales (65 men and 18 women per 1,000 population).
A fine was the most common punishment for those found guilty in 2005. Women were much more likely to be fined than men; on average 79 per cent of women sentenced compared with 71 per cent of men. Only in Scotland were men more likely than women to receive fines (65 per cent of men compared with 59 per cent of women).
In 2006, 82,000 men aged 18 or over were sentenced to immediate imprisonment, 11 times the number of women. Over two-thirds of men received sentences of one year or less, varying from 67 to 76 per cent across England and Wales, 78 per cent in Northern Ireland and 89 per cent in Scotland. For women the figures were higher in every case; 74 to 85 per cent in England and Wales, 89 per cent in Northern Ireland and 92 per cent in Scotland.
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