Mr. Neale Richmond:

I will start and then I will invite Ms Sparks to respond to some of the later questions. I acknowledge the comment on the fact that other committee meetings clash. We will endeavour to include the information in next year’s publication. This is an organic document. We are not scared of criticism and we welcome constructive criticism in particular. Our chapter on the European Parliament in this year’s report is a lot more detailed than last year because of the feedback received.

The point about serial offenders is appreciated but to ensure the scientific merit of the report, we strictly do not individualise. We just want the data for the collective and we do not intend to deviate from that position. When we released the report two weeks ago, the first queries we received from the press related to individual rates but we do not feel we are in a position to rate individuals. We would prefer to rate the collective.