These patients were subject upon discharge to restrictions according to Part III of the Mental Health Act 1983 or the Criminal Procedure (Insanity) Act 1964. The population detained in hospitals at the end 1993 was 2,276, higher than in any of the previous 10 years. Of those 64 percent had committed violent personal crime, 11 percent had committed sexual offenses, and 10 percent were arsonists. The number of patients transferred from prison before sentence increased by 28 percent between 1992 and 1993; after sentence, the number rose by 26 percent. In 1993, 1,031 restricted patients were admitted to psychiatric hospitals, a figure 4 times that in 1983. Nine percent of restricted patients admitted in 1993 were women. In 1993, 93 percent of restricted patients admitted to hospital had a mental illness condition, compared to 77 percent in 1983. 7 figures, 12 tables, and 18 notes