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Carl Bridgewater
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment (a) he and (b) his predecessors made of the evidence of prison officer Kenneth Mann about statements alleged to have been made by Patrick Molloy while awaiting trial for the murder of Carl Bridgewater. [16075]
Mr. Kirkhope: A statement by this officer is one of a number of statements recording admissions by Mr. Molloy, which were taken into account both in the previous consideration of this case and in reaching the provisional conclusions notified on 7 December 1995.
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will disclose to solicitors acting for the men convicted of murdering Carl Bridgewater, the statements of the education officer at HMP Gartree relating to Patrick Molloy. [16076]
Mr. Kirkhope: A statement made by a former education officer at Gartree prison was disclosed on 9 June 1995 to the convicted men's solicitor.
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department between which dates Patrick Molloy was detained at HMP Winson Green while awaiting trial for the murder of Carl Bridgewater. [16074]
Mr. Kirkhope:
The statements of two witnesses indicate that Mr. Molloy was detained in Winson Green prison at some point while awaiting trail, but it has not been possible to find any prison records which confirm this, or to establish the dates.
21 Feb 1996 : Column: 144
Mr. Parry:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many political refugees from Nigeria are settled in the United Kingdom at the latest available date; and if he will make a statement. [15688]
Mr. Kirkhope:
The information requested is not available. However, between 1992 and 1994, three Nigerian nationals were granted settlement after having been in the United Kingdom for four years as refugees. During the same period two Nigerian nationals were recognised as refugees and granted asylum. They may apply for settlement after four years.
Mr. Parry:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many political refugees have been accepted into the United Kingdom in each of the last five years at the latest date. [15689]
Mr. Kirkhope:
During 1995, 1,295 asylum seekers were granted refugee status. Information on the number of grants of asylum in earlier years is given in table 3.1 of the Home Office statistical bulletin "Asylum Statistics United Kingdom 1994", issue 15/95, a copy of which is available in the Library.
Mr. Hicks:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department under what legislative provisions the spouse of a United Kingdom subject working overseas on a permanent basis may satisfy the criteria for eligibility for naturalisation as a British citizen; and if he will make a statement. [15878]
Mr. Kirkhope:
The provisions governing naturalisation of the spouse of a British citizen are set out in sections 6(2) of and schedule 1 to the British Nationality Act 1981. Applicants are required to be:
Except where the British citizen is in Crown or designated service, the spouse is required to have lived in the Untied Kingdom during the three years prior to application.
aged 18 or over and not of unsound mind;
of good character;
married to a British citizen at the time of application;
free of any time limit on their stay in the United Kingdom under the immigration laws on the date of application;
and to meet certain conditions regarding residence.
Fire Service College
Mr. Roy Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to prevent the closure of the Fire Service College. [15855]
Mr. Sackville: The Fire Service College will continue as a next steps agency operating as a trading fund.
Fire Brigades
Mr. Roy Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he proposes to take to ensure that fire brigades throughout the country are adequately funded in 1996-97. [15854]
21 Feb 1996 : Column: 145
Mr. Sackville:
It is up to each fire authority, in the light of the proposed criteria for council tax capping, to set a budget for 1996-97 which will enable it to comply with its statutory duties under the Fire Services Act 1947.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research has been conducted into the relative effectiveness of (a) prison education and (b) behaviour modification courses; and if he will make a statement. [16091]
Miss Widdecombe:
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the temporary Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Richard Tilt to Mr. Alex Carlile, dated 21 February 1996:
Mr. Merchant:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what will be the total cost to public funds of the Metropolitan police in 1996-97; and if he will make a statement. [17034]
Mr. Howard:
As police authority for the Metropolitan police district. I have approved estimates which provide for net revenue expenditure of £1,716.995 million in 1996-97.
The receiver for the Metropolitan police district is issuing, with my approval, a precept of £49.84 per property in band D of the council tax valuation band for Metropolitan police purposes.
I have discussed the estimates for the Metropolitan police expenditure in 1996-97 with representatives of the London local authority associations.
Mr. Miller:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what authority records in the Home Office, relating to the case of Mr. Paul Malone between the years of 1982 and 1984, were destroyed; and if he will make a statement. [14770]
Miss Widdecombe
[holding answer 12 February 1996]: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the temporary Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Richard Tilt to Mr. Andrew Miller, dated 21 February 1996:
21 Feb 1996 : Column: 146
Mr. Kirkwood:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many written parliamentary questions were passed for answer to executive agencies and non-governmental departments in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [14994]
Mr. Horam:
Parliamentary questions are not transferred to non-departmental public bodies. The Department's first agency was established on 1 April 1991.
No parliamentary questions were referred to agencies in the 1991-92 parliamentary Session. Five were referred in the 1992-93 parliamentary Session, two in the 1993-94 Session and 17 in the 1994-95 Session.
Six questions have been referred to date in the 1995-96 Session.
Mr. Sheerman:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases have been reported in each health authority in each of the last five years of patients dying after hospital admission but before being found a bed. [15895]
Mr. Horam:
The information is not available centrally.
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will investigate the extent of the practice of NHS trusts and health authorities raising senior management salaries before making them redundant; [15859]
Mr. Malone:
These are local matters. All national health service boards are required to establish a remuneration and terms of service committee to exercise proper control of executive board members' remuneration. Trust boards are accountable for the proper appointment, appraisal and remuneration of their senior executives and, as in all their functions, boards must have regard to the public service values of accountability, probity and openness enshrined in the codes of conduct and accountability issued to all NHS boards in April 1994.
21 Feb 1996 : Column: 147
Mr. Redmond:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he is taking to ensure the cost of management staff reductions at NHS health authorities does not exceed the annual savings. [15872]
Mr. Malone:
It is for individual health authorities to keep their costs within agreed limits and so deliver their contribution to the overall planned savings.
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about research conducted into the relative effectiveness of (a) prison education and (b) behaviour modification courses.
The available research evidence indicates that programmes can be effective in reducing the risk of re-offending if they are: relevant to the offending of those involved; use methods to which offenders are responsive; provide enough treatment to produce sustained effects; are properly implemented and managed; and are reinforced by compatible work after release. Both prison education and behaviour modification programmes can meet these criteria.
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about records relating to Mr. Paul Malone and under what authority they were destroyed.
Generally Home Office files are selected for retention or destruction in accordance with criteria agreed with the Public Record Office. Papers which are needed on a long term basis for administrative purposes, or because they may be selected for permanent preservation in the Public Record Office, may be kept in the Department for up to 30 years; however in the interest of efficiency, papers which are likely to be of only ephemeral interest are destroyed when they are around 5 years old.
Specific instructions about locally held prison records are set out in Circular Instructions 44/1978 and 23/1990, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.
(2) if he will instruct NHS trusts and health authorities that managers on fixed-term contracts should not be made redundant for the purpose of management savings unless this can be done at nil cost. [15908]
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