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DEFENCE
Japanese Companies (Collaboration)
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will provide details of any projects worked in collaboration with Japanese companies.
Mr. Sainsbury : The Ministry of Defence is involved in no such projects.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Taxation and National Insurance
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will specify the distribution of gains in the
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Budget from each item where (a) tax or (b) national insurance changes were made other than normal indexation, according to income bands as follows : less than £5,000 per year, £5,000 to £7,500, £7, 500 to £10,000, £10,000 to £12,500, £12,500 to £15,000, £15,000 to £20,000, £20,000 to £30,000, £30,000 to £50,000 and above £50,000 ; and if he will indicate the percentage of total (a) tax and (b) national insurance changes accruing to each group and the percentage of the total numbers of (a) taxpayers and (b) national insurance that each group comprises.Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 2 May 1989] : The changes in income tax rates and allowances other than those for indexation are the changes to age allowances and withdrawal rate. They will cost about £15 million in 1989-90. About 15 per cent. of this cost will go to taxpayers with income less than £5,000 ; about half to those with incomes between £5,000 and £10,000 and the rest to those with incomes between £10,000 and £14,000. The total number of taxpayers who will benefit is about half a million ; about 2 per cent. of all taxpayers. Further information is not available.
The required information for national insurance contribution in the year 1990-91 (the first full year of the proposed NICs structure) is estimated to be as follows :
Distribution of NICs gains and gainers in 1990-91
Earnings<1> £000s |Gains £ billion |Gains per cent. |Numbers<2> per cent.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<5.0 |0.15 |5 |13
5- 7.5 |0.30 |11 |14
7.5-10.0 |0.55 |20 |17
10.0-12.5 |0.50 |18 |16
12.5-15.0 |0.40 |15 |13
15.0-20.0 |0.50 |18 |15
20.0-30.0 |0.30 |10 |9
30.0-40.0 |0.05 |1.5 |1.5
40.0+ |0.05 |1.5 |1.5
|--- |--- |---
Total |2.80 |100 |100
<1> Earners with weekly earners below the weekly lower earnings limit assumed for 1990-91 are ignored.
Insufficient information is available on those earning £50,000 and above and so the table shows figures
for £40,000 and above.
<2> Numbers are of national insurance class 1 standard rate contributors earning in excess of the lower
earnings limit.
Government Debt
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer further to his answer to the hon. Member for Nottingham, North, of 25 April, Official Report, column 470, if he will list any rules relating to the holding of Government debt by insurance companies and pension funds.
Mr. Lilley : I still do not know which rules the hon. Gentleman has in mind. If he would care to write to me about this matter, I would be happy to respond.
Tax Returns
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the numbers of Inland Revenue tax returns issued and received in each year from 1979 to the latest year available.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The approximate numbers of personal tax returns issued at the start of every tax year from 1979-80 onwards are as follows :
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|(millions)
---------------------------------
1979-80 |9.79
1980-81 |9.11
1981-82 |8.35
1982-83 |7.88
1983-84 |8.00
1984-85 |7.92
1985-86 |7.64
1986-87 |7.35
1987-88 |7.30
1988-89 |7.31
1989-90 |7.97
No central record is available of the number of returns received.
Tax Fraud
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list for 1979 and 1987-88 the number of cases of tax fraud detected for which the amount recovered exceeded (a) £100,000, (b) £500,000 and (c) £1,000,000.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The numbers of settlements in cases of tax fraud, categorised by the amounts recovered, including appropriate interest and penalties, were :
|1988-89
----------------------------------
£
100,000- 500,000 |517
500,001-1,000,000 |32
over 1,000,000 |18
Figures for earlier years could be provided only at
disproportionate cost.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the total number of Inland Revenue staff currently employed in investigating tax fraud, and the number employed in 1979.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : Inland Revenue resources, expressed as units of full-time staff, employed in investigating tax fraud are :
|Number
-----------------------------------------
Year to 31 October 1980<1> |1,265
Year to 31 March 1989 |2,752
<1> The earliest year for which figures
are available.
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Tax Investigations
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the number of Inland Revenue tax investigations settled (a) with and (b) without prosecution for tax recovered between (i) £0.1 million and £0.5 million, (ii) £0.5 million and £1.0 million and (c) over £1.0 million from 1979 to the most recent year available.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : (a). No records are kept of the total amounts of tax recovered from investigations which result in prosecution. However, the numbers of prosecutions categorised by the amounts of tax in respect of the matters brought before the court, were :
|1979 |1988-89
------------------------------------------
100,000-500,000 |3 |6
500,001-1,000,000 |- |1
over 1,000,000 |- |-
Figures for intervening years could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
(b). The Inland Revenue keeps records of total settlements only (that is, tax plus interest penalties where appropriate). Details of settlements categorised by amounts of tax alone could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the numbers of staff currently in post in the Inland Revenue division dealing with schedule D evasion.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The number of Inland Revenue staff, expressed as full-time units, employed in dealing with Schedule D evasion for the year ended 31 March 1989 is 2,135.
Tax Statistics
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will give the number of tax units (a) not liable to income tax, (b) liable to income tax at the basic rate and (c) liable to tax at rates higher than the basic rate in (i) 1978-79, (ii) 1988-89 and 1989-90 ;
(2) if he will give the number of tax units over pensionable age (a) not liable to income tax, (b) liable to income tax at the basic rate and (c) liable to tax at rates higher than the basic rate in 1978-79, 1988-89 and 1989-90.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answers 8 May 1989] : Estimates are given in the tables.
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Estimated Number of Tax Units<1> (millions)
Not liable to income tax |Liable to income tax at reduced rate only |Liable to income tax at basic rate (excluding higher rate taxpayers)|Liable to income tax at higher rate |All tax units
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aged<2> units
1978-79 |4.4 |1.0 |1.4 |0.1 |6.9
1988-89 |5.0 |- |2.4 |0.2 |7.6
1989-90 |4.9 |- |2.4 |0.2 |7.5
All tax units
1978-79 |7.7 |3.1 |17.6 |0.7 |29.1
1988-89 |11.0 |- |19.9 |1.3 |32.2
1989-90 |11.0 |- |19.8 |1.5 |32.3
<1> Single people and married couples.
<2> Single people aged 65 and over and married couples in which one or both members are aged 65 or over.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the amount and share of pre-tax income accruing to (a) the top one per cent., (b) the top five per cent., (c) the top ten per cent., (d) the top 25 per cent., (e) the bottom 70 per cent., (f) the bottom five per cent. and (g) all taxpayers in each year 1978-79 to 1988-89 and the amount and share of tax liability for each of these groups.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : Estimates are given in the tables for 1978-79 and 1983-84 to 1988-89. Information for other years could be provided
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only at disproportionate cost. All estimates of income are based on information reported to tax offices and collected through the annual surveys of personal incomes. For years before 1985-86, estimates exclude employees' contributions to occupational pension schemes and some investment income on which tax is deducted at source. Estimates are based on the surveys of personal incomes for years up to 1986-87 and projections of the 1986-87 survey for subsequent years ; the latter are, therefore, provisional.I regret that information on the bottom five per cent. of taxpayers is not available.
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Group of taxpayers
Top 1 per cent. Top 5 per cent. Top 10 per cent. Top 25 per cent. Bottom 70 per cent. All taxpayers
|Amount |Share |Amount |Share |Amount |Share |Amount |Share |Amount |Share |Amount
Year |£ billion|per cent.|£ billion|per cent.|£ billion|per cent.|£ billion|per cent.|£ billion|per cent.|£ billion
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross incomes before tax
1978-79 |5.1 |5 |15.0 |15 |24.3 |24 |45.9 |45 |51.0 |50 |102.8
1983-84 |9.7 |6 |28.3 |16 |45.0 |26 |81.7 |47 |82.0 |47 |173.7
1984-85 |10.9 |6 |31.4 |17 |49.6 |26 |89.3 |47 |88.8 |47 |188.8
1985-86 |12.9 |6 |35.7 |17 |55.9 |26 |100.5 |47 |100.0 |47 |212.6
1986-87 |15.1 |7 |40.8 |17 |63.2 |27 |112.5 |48 |107.3 |46 |232.9
1987-88<1> |16.7 |7 |45.2 |18 |70.1 |27 |124.5 |49 |116.7 |46 |255.8
1988-89<1> |19.0 |7 |51.3 |18 |79.4 |28 |140.4 |49 |129.8 |45 |286.5
Income tax liabilities
1978-79 |2.3 |11 |4.9 |24 |7.0 |34 |11.5 |57 |7.7 |38 |20.2
1983-84 |3.8 |11 |8.5 |26 |12.2 |36 |19.5 |58 |12.5 |38 |33.4
1984-85 |4.2 |12 |9.3 |26 |13.3 |38 |21.1 |60 |12.4 |35 |35.4
1985-86 |5.0 |13 |10.6 |27 |14.8 |38 |23.2 |60 |13.6 |35 |38.8
1986-87 |6.2 |14 |12.7 |29 |17.3 |40 |26.5 |61 |14.5 |34 |43.3
1987-88<1> |6.9 |15 |14.0 |31 |18.8 |41 |28.4 |62 |14.8 |32 |45.6
1988-89<1> |6.0 |13 |13.5 |29 |18.6 |40 |28.6 |62 |15.2 |33 |46.4
<1> Provisional; Includes estimates of occupational pension contributions and Investment Income not reported to tax offices.
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the total amount of tax recovered from tax investigations in each of the individual cases where the recovered amount exceeded £1 million.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The total amount of tax recovered from the 43 investigation cases settled in 1988-89 where in each case the amount recovered exceeded £1 million was £132 million.
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Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the proportion of gross income paid in income tax, national insurance contributions and value added tax by (a) a married man with a non-earning wife and two children and (b) a married man with an earning wife and two children at one half one and half, two, three, five and 10 times national average earnings in 1989-90 ; and what were the comparable figures in 1978- 79.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] :
The information requested is in the table.
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Married man with non-earning wife and two children
Multiples of average
male earnings
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proportion of gross earnings: |ncome tax|-4.1 |14.4 |20.6 |23.6 |32.0 |47.1
NICs |6.5 |6.5 |5.6 |4.2 |2.8 |1.7 |0.8
VAT |- |2.7 |2.7 |- |- |- |-
1989-90
Income tax |-1.0 |12.0 |16.4 |18.4 |20.6 |22.4 |23.7
NICs |7.9 |8.4 |6.8 |5.1 |3.4 |2.0 |1.0
VAT |- |5.0 |5.7 |- |- |- |-
1978-79
Income tax |-11.1 |6.4 |15.2 |19.7 |25.9 |32.9 |50.6
NICs |6.5 |6.5 |6.5 |6.5 |5.4 |3.4 |1.7
VAT |- |3.4 |3.4 |- |- |- |-
1989-90
Income tax |-10.6 |7.1 |13.1 |16.0 |19.0 |21.4 |23.2
NICs |5.4 |7.5 |8.3 |8.4 |6.8 |4.1 |2.0
VAT |- |5.9 |6.0 |- |- |- |-
Notes:
(1) Average male earnings in 1989-90 are assumed to be £273.10 per week, 7er cent. higher than in 1988-89.
This represents a real increase of over 30 per cent. since 1978-79.
(2) Child benefit is treated as a negative income tax.
(3) Earners, including working wives, are assumed to pay Class 1 NI contributions at the contracted in rate.
The figures for NI contributions are financial year averages.
(4) The two earner couple is assumed to have joint earnings equal to the various multiples of average
earnings, split between husband and wife in the ratio 60:40.
(5) The estimates of VAT are derived from the 1985 Family Expenditure Survey and are based on the
illustrative assumption that 10 per cent. of disposable income is saved. Estimates cannot reliably be made
outside the range of 75 per cent. to 150 per cent. of average male earnings.
Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing tax and national insurance contributions less child benefit, where appropriate, for 1989-90, and comparable figures for 1988-89 and 1978-79, with the multiples of average earnings as half, two-thirds, one, five and 10 times for (a) a married couple with part-time working spouse, (b) a married couple plus two children with part-time working spouse and (c) a single person.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The information requested for a single person is given in the table. Figures for married couples with part-time working spouse have not been given, as they will depend on how much the part-time worker earns.
Payments of income tax and national insurance contributions by a
single person (£ per week) in current prices
Multiples of average male earnings<1>
|" |1 |5 |10
-----------------------------------------------------------------
1978-79 |10.93 |17.04 |29.25 |242.17 |625.97
1988-89 |30.67 |45.10 |73.87 |459.94 |968.14
<2>1989-90 |31.53 |47.03 |77.96 |492.81 |1,039.01
<1> Full time males on adult rates (all occupations), using
illustrative assumption of 7.5 per cent. growth in earnings
between 1988-89 and 1989-90.
<2> Financial year average of pre- and post-October regimes for
employees National Insurance Contributions.
Tax Allowances
Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost to the Exchequer at the 1989-90 tax rates announced in the Budget of the married man's tax allowance in excess of the corresponding single person's allowance ; how much of this cost is attributable to taxpayers aged below 65 years ; and what is the weekly value of this extra relief to the married man paying income tax at the standard rate.
Mr. Norman Lamont [holding answer 8 May 1989] : The direct revenue cost, at 1989-90 levels of income, of the married man's allowance in excess of the single person's allowance is estimated at £4.9 billion, of which £4.1 billion is attributable to those aged under 65. The extra relief is worth £7.64 per week to a basic rate taxpayer not entitled to aged allowance.
Budget Gainers
Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the gain per individual arising from each relevant component of the 1989 Budget, both at current prices and net of indexation for those at one half and three-quarters of average earnings, average earnings, and one and a half, two, five and 10 times average earnings ; and if he will provide comparable figures for each budget since 1979.
Mr. Norman Lamont : [holding answer 8 May 1989] : Individuals will benefit directly or indirectly from many
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Budget measures. These gains will vary according to their specific circumstances, as well as their level of earnings, and it would be impracticable to attempt to estimate the effects of all the measures listed in table 4.1 of the 1989 Financial Statement and Budget Report, let alone for each Budget since 1979. Information on the effects of specific measures may be found in the press notices issued each Budget day by Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise.HOME DEPARTMENT
Medical Officers
Mr. Robin Cook : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will ensure that any officers who have applied for medical officer training and are subject to disciplinary action are released as a matter of urgency.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The existence of disciplinary charges against prison officers awaiting transfer to hospital duties does not in itself preclude their posting. If the hon. Member has a specific case in mind, perhaps he could let me know.
Police Arrests
Ms. Gordon : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were arrested by the police in the United Kingdom in 1988 ; how many of those arrested were cautioned and how many were charged, and if he will provide a breakdown by police force area.
Mr. John Patten : The available information on arrests is given in the table. Numbers of persons who were cautioned and numbers prosecuted in each police force area for indictable offences are published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", supplementary tables : latest figures are for 1987 (table S3.7(a) for cautions and table S3.3(a) for prosecutions). The coverage of figures on arrests is wider than that of indictable offences, so arrests are not directly related to cautions or prosecutions. An arrest may not result in the arrested person being cautioned or prosecuted.
England and Wales 1987
Police force area |Arrests<1>
--------------------------------------------------------
Avon and Somerset |36,290
Bedfordshire |15,694
Cambridgeshire |17,239
Cheshire |23,310
Cleveland |24,670
Cumbria |14,591
Derbyshire |20,126
Devon and Cornwall |27,704
Dorset |13,478
Durham |21,762
Essex |35,140
Gloucestershire |12,428
Greater Manchester |109,963
Hampshire |52,052
Hertfordshire |20,538
Humberside |35,106
Kent |46,808
Lancashire |47,881
Leicestershire |20,945
Lincolnshire |17,282
London City of |3,702
Merseyside |54,088
Metropolitan Police |n.a.
Norfolk |17,232
Northamptonshire |14,193
Northumbria |60,206
North Yorkshire |16,656
Nottinghamshire |37,423
South Yorkshire |35,859
Staffordshire |34,585
Suffolk |12,010
Surrey |18,582
Sussex |32,448
Thames Valley |48,199
Warwickshire |10,625
West Mercia |25,027
West Midlands |93,562
West Yorkshire |70,640
Wiltshire |9,846
Dyfed-powys |8,803
Gwent |16,338
North Wales |18,092
South Wales |46,901
|-------
England and Wales |1,298,024
<1> Covers notifiable offences and some summary
offences.
n.a. Not available.
Prison Officers Association
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date he last met the chairman of the Prison Officers Association ; and what subjects were discussed.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend last invited the chairman of the Prison Officers Association (POA) to meet him on 29 September 1988. Discussion centred on the urgent need for prison officers to end industrial action which was contributing significantly to the unacceptably high number of prisoners--around 1,700--then being held in police cells. A number of more general points were also discussed.
Prisons (Disturbances)
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the prisons in England and Wales where inmates have gone on to the prison roof during a disturbance within the prison during the last three years ;
(2) if he will list each prison in England and Wales where there has been a disturbance among inmates for each of the last three years.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : In the three years up to 9 May, incidents involving a substantial number of inmates acting in concert and leading to significant damage occurred at the following prisons and remand centres :
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10 May 1986 to 9 May 1987Her Majesty's Prison, Wymott.
10 May 1987 to 9 May 1988
Her Majesty's Prison, Bedford.
10 May 1988 to 9 May 1989
Her Majesty's Prison, Ashwell.
Her Majesty's Prison, Canterbury.
Her Majesty's Prison, Haverigg.
Her Majesty's Youth Custody Centre and Remand Centre, Hindley. Her Majesty's Prison, Lindholme.
Her Majesty's Prison, Northeye.
Her Majesty's Remand Centre, Risley.
Her Majesty's Prison, Rollestone.
Her Majesty's Prison, Swansea.
Inmates climbed on to the roof during two of these incidents--at Risley and at Canterbury (where one inmate climbed on to the roof).
Domestic Violence
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will consult police chief constables about the value of appointing domestic violence liaison officers in every division ; (2) if he will request police forces to have available an information leaflet on sources of help for victims of domestic violence and to offer it when appropriate.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We shall be exploring with chief officers the scope for fresh guidance to the police about these and other issues identified in the recent Home Office research study on domestic violence.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what protection is available to victims of domestic violence if the case goes to court and the assailant is released before the court hearing ; and if he has any plans to increase protection.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : A defendant may be released on bail subject to any conditions which are considered necessary to prevent his interfering with witnesses or committing offences. If he breaches the conditions of bail, he may be re-arrested. The police also have discretion to provide suitable protection to the victims or witnesses of alleged offences where they consider it necessary. We have no plans to increase the existing protection provided by the police and courts.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many areas the police are involved in a multi-agency approach to the problem of domestic violence ; and if he will take steps to encourage such development.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Comprehensive information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost, but I understand that the majority of police forces have arrangements which include helping victims of domestic violence to contact other agencies which can provide help and support. We shall be considering with the police whether anything more needs to be done.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will request police chief constables to record domestic violence incidents separately and to ensure that a note is taken of whether violence is used or threatened ;
Column 563
(2) if he will take steps to improve the police system of recording statistics on domestic disputes and domestic violence ; and if he will ensure that a record is kept of the number and nature of calls for assistance coming from individual households where there have been allegations of domestic violence.Mr. Douglas Hogg : We shall include the collection and use of records of domestic violence in discussions with chief officers.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set up a comprehensive national survey, backed up by local surveys, of domestic violence so as to provide improved information on its prevalence, nature, causes, handling by the authorities, and effect on the victim and enable the identification of more effective preventative measures.
Mr. John Patten : The ministerial group on women's issues will consider the need for further research when it meets next month.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria he has given to the police to use when assessing which cases of domestic violence are passed to the Crown prosecution service for its decision on prosecution.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : None. The criteria to be applied when considering whether charges should be brought in cases involving domestic violence are the same as for any other offence.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set up a research study to investigate whether there is any difference in the likelihood of a police arrest when violence is domestic rather than non-domestic.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend will consider the possibility of research in the context of discussions with chief officers about domestic violence.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any information on the proportion of requests for assistance from the police that are due to a domestic dispute.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : No. Home Office records relate only to recorded crime, and not to all incidents to which the police are called.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is planning to reduce the escalation of domestic violence in the light of the finding in his Department's research study, "Domestic Violence", that domestic violence escalates over time.
Mr. John Patten : I would refer the right hon. Member to the reply given yesterday to a question from the hon. Member for Huddersfield (Mr. Sheerman).
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has regarding the percentage of cases of spousal homicide in which there had been earlier requests to the police for assistance.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : None. The information routinely collected on homicide cases does not enable us to establish whether the homicide was preceded by previous calls for police help.
Column 564
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the police force has received training in the handling of domestic violence ; who has the responsibility for providing the training ; who advises on its content ; and who monitors how successful it is.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : All new entrants to the police service in England and Wales receive a basic training in dealing with offences of domestic violence as part of their initial training at district training centres. For more senior ranks, there is a session on domestic violence in the inspectors' management development course. These courses will be monitored by the central planning and training unit and the forces themselves.
The provision of further training in forces is a matter for chief officers to decide. They will devise and update any training on the basis of their analysis of operational and training needs in their force area. Chief officers may invite other agencies--such as victim support schemes--to participate in in-force training if they consider that this would make a constructive contribution to the quality of training provided.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will seek information from the Tottenham police force regarding the effectiveness of its multi-agency approach to tackling domestic violence.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Evaluating the effectiveness of the Tottenham unit is primarily a matter for the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. We shall, however, be seeking further information about the specialist units set up by the Metropolitan police, and about initiatives in other force areas, as part of our review of procedures to deal with domestic violence.
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will ask the Metropolitan police for a report on the effects of their 1987 guidelines which called for domestic violence to be treated as seriously as assaults occurring in the street.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Implementation of force orders within the Metropolitan police district is the responsibility of the Commissioner. I understand from the Commissioner that the force order relating to domestic violence is currently the subject of a full evaluation which is due to be completed by the autumn. My right hon. Friend is asking to be advised of the outcome.
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