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Local Government Ombudsman Service
Mr. Sykes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what conclusions have been reached on the review of the local government ombudsman service in England; and if he will make a statement. [7033]
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Mr. Curry: In February 1996, I announced to the House, Official Report, column 402, that we were proceeding with the second stage of the review--focusing on the efficiency and effectiveness of the Commission for Local Administration in England as an investigatory body--in parallel with consulting interested parties on the wider issues raised about the CLA's future in the review's first stage. In August 1996, the second stage reviewer presented his report to my right hon. Friend and to the chairman of the CLA, and we concluded our consultation.
We have now carefully considered all the recommendations of both stages 1 and 2 of the review, together with all the comments that we received from our consultation. The CLA has also considered carefully those recommendations directed to it. I have today arranged for copies of a paper setting out our response to these recommendations to be placed in the Library of the House. I have also arranged for copies of the Review's second stage report to be placed in the Library.
On the issues raised by the review's first stage, we have concluded that there needs to be a wholly independent body--an ombudsman--to which citizens who are aggrieved in their dealings with public bodies can turn, if there is to be a guarantee that complaints of maladministration will be fully and equitably investigated. Accordingly, we confirm our earlier provisional view, which I told the House on 12 February, that the CLA's principal role should continue to be as a wholly independent, investigatory body for complaints of maladministration relating to local government in England. We also confirm our earlier view that there should in general continue to be a voluntary approach to the provision of local complaints systems in local government.
The review's second stage concludes that the cost of the CLA is a fraction of the cost of resolving a similar number of complaints through legal processes, and makes a range of recommendations for performance improvements covering issues of accountability, jurisdiction, powers, management systems and financial accountability, and quality of service. We believe that overall these recommendations provide a package of measures for significantly modernising and improving the local government ombudsman service in England, and we intend to take them forward as set out in the paper which I have today placed in the Library.
Mr. David Nicholson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will respond to the recommendations relating to registered housing associations in the second report of the Committee on Standards in Public Life; and if he will make a statement. [7197]
Mr. Gummer:
Copies of my response have today been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. I welcome the broad thrust of the recommendations as they affect the Housing Corporation and housing associations, and in future other social landlords registered with the Housing Corporation. In general, they reflect current Government policy.
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Mr. Stewart:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people in Scotland have a schedule of previous convictions which includes a qualifying offence as defined under clause 1 of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Bill. [5129]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
Information supplied by the Scottish Criminal Records Office shows that currently there are some 12,700 people for whom the SCRO has a schedule of previous convictions which includes a qualifying offence as defined under clause 1 of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Bill. It is not known which of these people are currently resident in Scotland. Of these 12,700 people convicted of qualifying offences, 3,300 were convicted in the High Court.
The information held by the SCRO does not identify whether a conviction for robbery involved a firearm. However, many of those convicted of robbery with a firearm are also convicted under one of sections 16 to 18 of the Firearms Act 1968 which counts as a qualifying offence.
Mr. Beggs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if Her Majesty's Government will make urgent representations to the EU Commission for measures to be put in place to safeguard the United Kingdom salmon industry through a minimum import price for salmon entering the United Kingdom market. [5819]
Mr. Raymond S. Robertson:
In view of the continued depressed state of the European market for farmed salmon, my right hon. Friend wrote to Commissioner Bonino on 22 November asking for the reintroduction of minimum import prices.
I trust that the Commission will respond quickly and positively to this request.
Mr. Stewart:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of legal aid applications in Scotland in (a) civil and (b) criminal cases are currently decided within six weeks. [6102]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
In 1995-96, the percentage of civil legal aid applications which were decided within six weeks was 89 per cent. The equivalent figure for criminal legal aid applications was 100 per cent.
Mr. Stewart:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if he will place in the Library a copy of the report made to him by the Scottish Legal Aid Board following visits in 1995 to the USA and Canada in connection with the proposals contained in part V of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Bill; [6130]
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Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
No members of staff of the Scottish Legal Aid Board paid official visits to the USA and Canada in 1994-95 or 1995-96. One member of the board's senior staff holidayed in Canada in 1994-95 and took the opportunity of visiting the Public Defender's Office in Manitoba. The cost of this visit was met personally by the individual concerned. Although outwith the specified dates, in June 1996, a member of staff attended an international audit conference and took the opportunity to visit the Los Angeles county public defender. The cost of attending the conference was £1,720.
No report of either visit has been sent to me.
Mr. Stewart:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the advantages of applying the provisions of part V of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Bill to advocates; and if he will make a statement. [6121]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
As we estimate that only 6 per cent. of expenditure on criminal legal assistance involves advocates. It is not proposed to extend part V to them.
Mr. Donohoe:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many prosecutions have taken place in each year under the terms of the Methylated Spirits (Sale by Retail) (Scotland) Act 1937 since 1966. [6361]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
The information required is not separately identifiable within the Scottish Office Home Department classification of crimes and offences.
Mr. Donohoe:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment his Department has carried out in relation to the continuing abuse and misuse of methylated and surgical spirits. [6362]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
No assessment has been carried out by the Scottish Office in relation to the abuse and misuse of methylated and surgical spirits.
Mr. Donohoe:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what criteria the procurators fiscal take into account when deciding what action to take in relation to the prosecution of HGV offences reported to them by the Vehicle Inspectorate; and if he will make it his policy to ensure the percentage of prosecutions of HGV offences reported to procurators fiscal by the Vehicle Inspectorate is comparable to the percentage of prosecutions in England and Wales. [6365]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
My noble and learned Friend the Lord Advocate is responsible for prosecution policy in Scotland. Procurators fiscal have a discretion as to whether to take proceedings against persons reported to them by the Vehicle Inspectorate. Procurators fiscal also have available to them a number of alternatives to prosecution. They have to decide whether it is in the public interest to initiative proceedings. In doing so, procurators fiscal will have regard to a number of factors including whether there is sufficient evidence, the seriousness of the offence and any road safety implications, the age of the offence and whether there are
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any mitigating circumstances. The Lord Advocate does not consider comparability with the level of prosecutions in England to be a relevant criterion for determining prosecution policy in Scotland. There are significant differences between Scotland and England both as regards the evidential requirements and the availability of alternatives to prosecution, such as conditional offers under section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 which applies only to Scotland.
(2) how many members and staff of the Scottish Legal Aid Board visited the USA and Canada in (a) 1994-95 and (b) 1995-96; and what was the cost of these visits. [6131]
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