CRIMES AGAINST PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES

That this House notes with concern the murder of Steven Hoskin; further notes that Mr Hoskin had learning disabilities and that the Crown Prosecution Service has stated that Mr Hoskin was a victim of a disability hate crime; notes that, according to a Mencap survey, 23 per cent. of people with learning disabilities have been assaulted because of their learning disabilities and that people with learning disabilities see such incidents as an inevitable part of everyday life; yet notes that the Crown Prosecution Service has recorded only 57 successful prosecutions for such crime between April and September 2007; further notes that this compares with 2,249 race hate prosecutions in the same period; and calls on the Government to set out in the forthcoming revision of the Violent Crime Strategy how it will increase the number of prosecutions for crime against people with disabilities and attempt to prevent such incidents.