| Previous Section | Home Page |
HOME DEPARTMENT
Police, Wales
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the resources available to the police forces in Wales to enable them to maintain an appropriate level of policing over the Christmas period.
Mr. Charles Wardle : It is for the chief officer of each force to assess his operational requirements at any time, and to provide the appropriate level of policing.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received regarding the possibility of potential inadequacy of police resources in Wales over the Christmas period.
Mr. Charles Wardle : We have received one representation. This relates to police staffing levels in the south Wales police area over the Christmas bank holiday period.
Safer Cities Initiative
Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he proposes to annnounce which local authorities will receive resources under the safer cities initiative ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : My right hon. and learned Friend expects to make an announcement shortly.
Racism and Immigrants
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the specific actions his Department has taken to combat racism in (a) Tower Hamlets and (b) the United Kingdom ; (2) what action his Department has taken to encourage a positive public perception of immigrants.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I will write to the hon. Member.
Entry Refusals
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many appeals against refusal of entry to visitors were made in the last year in which appeals were accepted ; and how many were successful.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The available information on the outcome of appeals against exclusion and against refusal of entry clearance for temporary purposes is given in Table 8.1 of Home Office Command Paper "Control of Immigration : Statistics United Kingdom 1992", Cm 2368, a copy of which is in the Library.
Immigration Complaints Audit Committee
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the three members he has appointed to the new immigration and nationality department complaints audit committee are members of the Conservative party.
Column 776
Mr. Charles Wardle : The members of the IND complaints audit committee were appointed on the basis of the experience and expertise they would bring to the task. Party political affiliation, or the absence of it, played no part in their selection.
As a matter of public record, one of the members is a Conservative member of a borough council. I have no knowledge of the political affiliations, if any, of the other two members.
Drug Misuse
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in bringing forward proposals to ensure that the action to prevent drug misuse is co-ordinated effectively ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Howard : The fight against drugs is one of the Government's priorities. We remain committed to tackling every aspect of the drugs problem and are actively addressing issues across a range of policy areas which are the responsibility of a number of Government Departments. We need, however, to review our strategy to ensure that the policies we are pursuing are correctly identified and are co-ordinated effectively.
The Secretary of State for Health and I have therefore decided--with the support of our colleagues--to set up a new central drugs co-ordination unit. The unit will have two major tasks. First, it will ensure that departmental policies are planned, developed and implemented in England within a clear strategic framework. Second, the unit will take the lead in devising an effective basis for local co-ordination of action to tackle the drugs problem, which will add significantly to the value of much excellent work already being carried out locally in the public, private and voluntary sectors. The unit's immediate task is to review the strategy on drugs published in 1989 and make recommendations for its improvement.
The unit will be attached to the Privy Council Office, reporting to the Lord President of the Council, who chairs the Cabinet committee on drugs issues. Individual Government Departments will remain responsible for their policies which impact on the drugs problem and will work closely with the unit.
In Scotland, the arrangements for co-ordination are among the issues being addressed by the drugs task force led by my noble and learned Friend the Minister of State, Scottish Office. The Secretary of State for Wales will shortly announce the arrangements which will apply in Wales.
Film Violence
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider introducing further restrictions on the depiction of violence in films and videos.
Mr. Maclean : We already have a well-established and rigorous system of video classification exercised by the British Board of Film Classification under the Video Recordings Act 1984 and 1993. In practice the BBFC exercises a similar role in relation to cinema films, although the legal responsibility under the Cinemas Act 1985 lies with local authorities.
The BBFC's approach to the classification of films and videos is discussed in its annual report for 1992, a copy of
Column 777
which is available in the Library. This makes it clear that the BBFC takes its responsibilities very seriously, and that it is particularly concerned about the depiction of violence. The BBFC is required to have special regard to the fact that videos will be viewed in the home ; consequently films are more restrictively classified on video than for the cinema, and some cinema films may not be regarded as suitable for release on video in any version. The BBFC, with others, has commissioned research into the viewing habits of young offenders in order to inform its future classification policy, and I understand that the results of this research are expected to be published early next year.The Government are not complacent about this issue, and we keep the present controls under regular review. Nevertheless, as I explained in my reply to the hon. Member on 7 December, Official Report, column 163, the law can go only so far and the final responsibility for what is seen must inevitably rest in the home.
Charities
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many charities are currently registered in the united Kingdom ; and how many of them hold funds in excess of £5 million.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : At the end of November 1993, there were 169,829 charities on the register kept by the Charity Commissioners for England and Wales.
No reliable figure exists for the number of charities which hold funds or other assets worth £5 million or more. There are, however, at least 345 registered charities in England and Wales with an annual income of £5 million or more in their last financial year.
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to altering the guidelines to ensure that charities dispose of their funds in excess of maintaining reasonable resources.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : This is a matter for the Charity Commissioners. I understand that the commissioners are concerned about the high level of accumulations of income of some charities and are currently considering the key policy issues that arise from this. The commissioners will complete their examination of the matter in the new year and are planning to issue formal guidance to charities shortly after that.
Departmental Offices (Heating Bills)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list, by location, the annual fuel heating bills for each of his Department's offices for the last four years, and for this year to date.
Mr. Howard : I will write to the hon. Member.
Operation Cheetah
Mr. Parry : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many man hours have been used in Operation Cheetah at the latest date.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Merseyside police estimate that, since April 1990, approximately 22,000 man days have been devoted to Operation Cheetah.
Column 778
Combat 18
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider launching an investigation into the activities of the group Combat 18.
Mr. Charles Wardle : If anyone has information that an individual or group is engaged in any kind of criminal activity he or she should pass it to the police. It is part of the normal responsibility of the police to keep an eye on all organisations that might pose a threat to public order.
Prisoners (Compensation Payments)
Mr. Luff : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many prisoners or ex-prisoners instituted legal action in relation to their imprisonment against the Home Office in 1992 ; and how many of these cases were settled out of court or were found against the Home Office ;
(2) on how many occasions prisoners or ex-prisoners were paid compensation or ex-gratia payment for other than losses of personal property in 1992 ; and what is the total of that compensation.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for these matters has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for replies to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Mr. Peter Luff, dated 16 December 1993 :
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent questions about litigation and compensation payments to prisoners and ex-prisoners.
I have assumed for the purpose of this reply that your questions relate to litigation and compensation payments connected to time spent in prison custody, rather than wrongful conviction, which of course falls outside my sphere of responsibility.
Prison Service records show 130 pieces of legal action against the department lodged by prisoners or ex-prisoners in 1992. Of these 13 have been settled out of court or found against the Home Office ; two have been withdrawn or struck out and the remaining 115 appear as outstanding (although there may be some delay in the recording of resolved cases). The compensation (including ex-gratia payments) paid to prisoners and ex- prisoners in 1992, other than for loss of property, was as follows :
Injuries at work £265,813
Excessive detention £22,718
Other claims £123,114
Total £411,645
Including personal injury outside work.
Figures for the number of individual claims are not recorded and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Wymott Prison
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what educational facilities are available to prisoners currently housed at Wymott prison ;
(2) what work facilities are available to prisoners currently housed at Wymott prison ;
(3) what training facilities are available to prisoners currently housed at Wymott prison ;
(4) what exercise facilities outside the cell block area are available to prisoners currently housed at Wymott prison ;
Column 779
(5) what progress is being made in the refurbishment of Wymott prison following the recent riots ; what hours and days of the week are the contractors on site ; and what proportion of the building is now habitable.Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for these matters has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated December 1993 :
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent questions about prisoners facilities and the progress of refurbishment at Wymott Prison.
There are facilities for forty full-time education places during the week within the education department, with a further forty prisoners participating in part-time evening education within the Houseblock.
A range of work is available now and includes tailoring, weaving, engineering and laundry. There are enough places for the number of prisoners held at Wymott. Further work places will be available in the New Year as the population rises.
In addition to the training provided through education and work, a number of accredited NVQ and formal Vocational Training Courses (VTCs) will be introduced over coming months.
The important work with prisoners to help them address offending behavour will commence in the New Year. This will include delivery of the core sex offender programme, for which staff are being trained as we promised when it was decided to move sex offenders from Risley to Wymott.
There are ample outdoor areas for fresh-air exercise, together with a fully equipped gymnasium.
Of the four house blocks, B' House is already fully occupied while refurbishment of A' House is on line for completion by 23 December and ready for occupation in mid-January 1994. The two remaining house blocks are to be demolished and re-built with stronger, cellular accommodation which will not be available for occupancy for about two years. Contractors are working on site for eleven hours a day, seven days a week.
Column 780
Sheehy Inquiry
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish the information provided to the Sheehy inquiry on the number of policemen injured on duty ;
(2) if he will publish the information provided to the Sheehy inquiry on the probability of death in service for police officers and the life expectations of those retiring at age 50 and 60 years.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Information on these subjects was provided to the inquiry from a number of different sources. That provided by Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary for England and Wales on the number of police officers assaulted on duty and by the Government Actuary's Department relating to the assumed probability of death in service for police officers and assumed life expectancy of those retiring is shown in the tables :
Specimen rates given to the Sheehy inquiry for the assumed probability of deaths in service at the ages specified Serving officers Age nearest |Males |Females ------------------------------------------------ 20 |0.0007 |0.0002 25 |0.0006 |0.0003 30 |0.0004 |0.0003 35 |0.0005 |0.0004 40 |0.0008 |0.0006 45 |0.0013 |0.0009 50 |0.0023 |0.0013 55 |0.0038 |0.0021
Retired officers: assumed expectation of life on normal retirement Years Normal retirement age |Males |Females ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 50 |28.3 |- 60 |19.8 |-
Column 779
Police officers assaulted on duty
1992
Officers assaulted Fatal assaultsSerious assaulMinor assaultsOther assaults
[NL] |Forces |Aged 18 to 20|Aged 21 to 25|Aged 26 to 30|Aged over 30
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avon and Somerset |1 |110 |130 |244 |0 |34 |450 |26
Bedfordshire |0 |37 |55 |60 |0 |5 |43 |125
Cambridge |0 |28 |39 |49 |0 |4 |119 |10
Cheshire |7 |207 |222 |279 |0 |23 |179 |513
City of London |1 |5 |6 |0 |0 |0 |8 |4
Cleveland |2 |35 |53 |93 |0 |14 |107 |84
Cumbria |5 |22 |33 |70 |0 |9 |129 |6
Derbyshire |0 |58 |103 |156 |0 |21 |213 |83
Devon and Cornwall |1 |48 |96 |166 |0 |16 |108 |246
Dorset |2 |17 |32 |87 |0 |26 |110 |2
Durham |2 |43 |77 |105 |0 |7 |35 |185
Dyfed-Powys |3 |11 |23 |39 |0 |11 |78 |1
Essex |11 |66 |50 |82 |0 |10 |110 |89
Gloucestershire |2 |28 |37 |78 |0 |17 |126 |2
Greater Manchester |0 |167 |431 |411 |0 |83 |458 |468
Gwent |5 |72 |88 |124 |0 |10 |14 |265
Hampshire |2 |54 |113 |219 |0 |10 |94 |284
Hertfordshire |4 |36 |46 |47 |0 |3 |35 |100
Humberside |1 |30 |42 |144 |0 |7 |96 |130
Kent |4 |52 |67 |84 |0 |13 |47 |147
Lancashire |0 |105 |130 |201 |0 |14 |118 |334
Leicestershire |3 |23 |46 |78 |0 |8 |45 |111
Lincolnshire |0 |12 |20 |74 |0 |6 |51 |57
Merseyside |3 |134 |419 |463 |0 |59 |218 |762
Norfolk |11 |39 |54 |119 |0 |7 |74 |177
North Wales |0 |19 |33 |89 |0 |8 |124 |142
North Yorkshire |3 |30 |38 |69 |0 |6 |134 |0
Northamptonshire |2 |31 |32 |71 |0 |12 |124 |0
Northumbria |0 |75 |139 |218 |0 |68 |430 |6
Nottinghamshire |4 |85 |107 |170 |0 |13 |268 |126
South Wales |3 |118 |172 |290 |0 |41 |661 |47
South Yorkshire |1 |43 |70 |83 |0 |20 |83 |94
Staffordshire |20 |140 |110 |131 |0 |8 |358 |35
Suffolk |0 |24 |39 |69 |0 |6 |90 |74
Surrey |2 |73 |72 |92 |0 |12 |226 |1
Sussex |8 |56 |81 |165 |0 |18 |311 |33
Thames Valley |2 |89 |108 |175 |0 |13 |99 |262
Warwickshire |2 |34 |34 |59 |0 |8 |64 |57
West Mercia |1 |33 |66 |141 |0 |10 |126 |168
West Midlands |23 |362 |514 |746 |0 |110 |680 |855
West Yorkshire |7 |151 |210 |371 |0 |58 |373 |346
Wiltshire |8 |57 |56 |73 |0 |8 |98 |88
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Provincial Total |156 |2,859 |4,293 |6,495 |0 |836 |7,314 |6,545
Metropolitan Police |29 |289 |130 |98 |0 |140 |1,003 |2,270
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
England and Wales Total |185 |3,148 |4,423 |6,593 |0 |976 |8,317 |8,815
Prisoners (Release)
Ms Coffey : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it obligatory for the prison authorities to give prior notification to the police and to the victims of the crime of the release of a prisoner convicted of assault.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Under the early release arrangements introduced by the Criminal Justice Act 1991, the Prison Service already provides the police with prior notice of the release dates of all offenders, irrespective of the offence committed. I do not believe that it would be practicable to require the Prison Service to inform the victim or the victim's family in every instance that an offender, or particular class of offender, is due to be released. However, the Probation Service national standards for the supervision of offenders in the community which came into effect at the same time as the early release arrangements, require that in particularly sensitive cases the probation officer should, when completing a pre-discharge or parole assessment report, address the whereabouts, attitude towards release and concerns of the victim or the victim's family.
Central European Time
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when h Mr. Peter Lloyd : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to a question from my hon. Friend the hon. Member for Bournemouth, East (Mr. Atkinson) on 4 November 1933, Official Report, column 363 .
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration his Department has given to the likely effect on rates of crime against the person of a move to central European time.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The 1989 Green Paper "Summer Time--A Consultation Document", CM22, considered
Column 782
that definite conclusions about the possible effect of a move to central European time on crime in general, or on particular offences, are difficult to draw.Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public exchequer of a move to central European time.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, North-East (Mr. Thurnham) on 15 January 1993, at column 828 .
Summer Time
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been his Department's response to the proposed seventh directive on summer time arrangements in the European Community.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The Government have made clear in negotiations on the draft seventh directive that its terms are acceptable, while proposing that, on subsidiarity grounds, summer time start and end dates would better be the subject of a recommendation than of Community legislation.
Public Bodies
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which of the appointments made to public bodies by his Department since April 1992 have been advertised.
Mr. Howard : Since April 1992, the appointments of chief executive of the Commission for Racial Equality and the Data Protection Registrar have been advertised.
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his Department's policy is regarding the use of executive search consultants in making appointments to public bodies ; and if he will (a) list the appointments where such consultants have been used and (b) list the cost in each case since April 1992.
Column 783
Mr. Howard : Executive search consultants are used in making appointments to public bodies where it is thought that they will be able to supplement usefully the field of applicants.
Since April 1992, consultants have been used for the post of chief executive of the Commission for Racial Equality and in the current competition for the post of Data Protection Registrar.
For reasons of commercial confidentiality it is not our practice to disclose individual contract values. However, the combined value of the two contracts was £32,500.
Voluntary Action"
Sir John Stanley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy towards the proposals in the report, "Voluntary Action".
Mr. Peter Lloyd : "Voluntary Action" was written by Barry Knight of the Centre for Research and Innovation in Social Policy and Practice : the views in the report are those of the author. The Government consider the report to be a
Column 784
worthwhile contribution to the continuing debate on charities and the voluntary sector, but do not accept the report's proposals to end charitable status, tax concessions for charitable giving or to abolish the Charity Commission. The Government also consider that the proposal to split the voluntary sector into "first force" and "third sector" is too simple and mechanistic.Police
Mr. Mike O'Brien : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the police establishment plus supernumeraries for each month of 1993.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from the hon. Member for Cardiff, South and Penarth (Mr. Michael) on 24 November, at columns 55-56. Additional figures for the period September to November are given in the table. I will write to the hon. Member when complete figures for December are available.
Column 783
September October November
[NL] |Establishment |Super-numerary posts|Establishment |Super-numerary posts|Establishment
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avon and Somerset |3,087 |3 |3,087 |3 |3,087 |3
Bedfordshire |1,178 |0 |1,178 |0 |1,178 |0
Cambridgeshire |1,241 |38 |1,241 |38 |1,241 |38
Cheshire |1,920 |2 |1,920 |2 |1,920 |2
City of London |798 |90 |798 |105 |798 |105
Cleveland |1,502 |0 |1,502 |0 |1,502 |0
Cumbria |1,187 |1 |1,187 |1 |1,187 |1
Derbyshire |1,850 |0 |1,850 |0 |1,850 |0
Devon and Cornwall |2,928 |4 |2,928 |4 |2,928 |4
Dorset |1,302 |1 |1,302 |1 |1,302 |1
Durham |1,389 |1 |1,389 |1 |1,389 |1
Dyfed Powys |969 |1 |969 |1 |969 |1
Essex |2,950 |0 |2,950 |0 |2,950 |0
Gloucestershire |1,184 |0 |1,184 |0 |1,184 |0
Greater Manchester |7,077 |0 |7,077 |0 |7,077 |0
Gwent |1,010 |2 |1,010 |2 |1,010 |2
Hampshire |3,269 |0 |3,269 |0 |3,269 |0
Hertfordshire |1,684 |0 |1,684 |0 |1,684 |0
Humberside |2,034 |0 |2,034 |0 |2,034 |0
Kent |3,136 |37 |3,136 |37 |3,136 |37
Lancashire |3,229 |3 |3,229 |3 |3,229 |3
Leicestershire |1,853 |1 |1,853 |1 |1,853 |1
Lincolnshire |1,206 |0 |1,206 |0 |1,206 |0
Merseyside |4,706 |3 |4,706 |3 |4,706 |3
Metropolitan Police |27,839 |0 |27,839 |0 |27,839 |0
Norfolk |1,446 |1 |1,446 |1 |1,446 |1
North Wales |1,369 |2 |1,369 |2 |1,369 |2
North Yorkshire |1,418 |0 |1,418 |0 |1,418 |0
Northamptonshire |1,190 |1 |1,190 |1 |1,190 |1
Northumbria |3,613 |0 |3,613 |0 |3,163 |0
Nottinghamshire |2,344 |13 |2,344 |13 |2,344 |13
South Wales |3,168 |3 |3,168 |3 |3,168 |3
South Yorkshire |3,031 |0 |3,031 |0 |3,031 |0
Staffordshire |2,215 |1 |2,215 |1 |2,215 |1
Suffolk |1,233 |1 |1,233 |1 |1,233 |1
Surrey |1,673 |17 |1,673 |17 |1,673 |17
Sussex |3,014 |1 |3,014 |1 |3,014 |1
Thames Valley |3,812 |71 |3,812 |71 |3,812 |71
Warwickshire |1,020 |25 |1,020 |25 |1,020 |25
West Mercia |2,053 |2 |2,053 |2 |2,053 |2
West Midlands |6,977 |0 |6,977 |0 |6,977 |0
West Yorkshire |5,295 |2 |5,295 |2 |5,295 |2
Wiltshire |1,181 |108 |1,181 |108 |1,181 |018
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |126,580 |435 |126,580 |450 |126,580 |450
Column 785
Art Theft
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has to enable police forces to improve the detection of art theft ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The investigation of art theft is entirely a matter for individual chief officers of police. Some police forces have already taken steps to improve the effectiveness of their operations against art theft. The establishment of the artefact classification and indentification system by the Metropolitan police is one example to which I brought the hon. Member's attention on 7 July.
I cannot stress too greatly the important role members of the public play in preventing this type of crime by marking and keeping details and photographs of their valuable possessions.
Press Releases
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many press releases his Department has issued in each year since 1979.
Mr. Howard : The number of news releases issued by the Home Office for each full calendar year since 1979 is :
|Number
---------------------
1979 |250
1980 |249
1981 |237
1982 |207
1983 |249
1984 |327
1985 |346
1986 |406
1987 |384
1988 |476
1989 |500
1990 |475
1991 |510
1992 |348
Immigration Advisory Service
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are (a) the names, (b) the occupations and (c) the salaries of the trustees of the organisation formerly called UKIAS.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The trustees of the Immigration Appeals Advisory Service are Mr. Humfrey Malins, Chairman, Dr. M. S. Akram, Mr. Alf Dubs, Ms Rachel Pickavance and Dr. Z. U. Khan. I understand that trustees receive no remuneration for their services. The hon. Member may wish to address his request for information about the occupations of trustees direct to the Service, which, as I said in a reply to him on 10 December, Official Report, column 418, is an independent body.
Prison, Birmingham
Mr. Corbett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what present proposals he has to build a new prison in Birmingham.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
| Next Section
| Home Page |