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Civil Servants
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many civil servants there are on each pay band in his Department. [8951]
Mr. Straw: The Home Office has not yet adopted a pay band system. The number of serving civil servants 1 managed by the Home Office by grade equivalents is set out in the table. Although there is not as yet an agreed equivalency structure for all Prison Service grades, the following table is based on the current understanding.
| Grade equivalency | Home Office excluding Prison Service) | Prison Service | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| None | (2)28 | (3)88 | 116 |
| Administrative Assistants | 1,949 | 6,085 | 8,034 |
| Administrative Officers | 2,573 | 24,511 | 27,084 |
| Executive Officers | 3,783 | 3,658 | 7,441 |
| Higher Executive Officers | 1,522 | 1,121 | 2,643 |
| Senior Executive Officers | 608 | 896 | 1,504 |
| Grade 7s | 442 | 381 | 823 |
| Grade 6s | 85 | 254 | 339 |
| Non-Senior Civil Service Grades 2 to 5 | (4)17 | (5)56 | 73 |
| Senior Civil Service | 86 | 43 | 129 |
| Total | 11,109 | 37,093 | 48,202 |
(1) For the Home Office (non-Prison-Service), "serving civil servants" refers to permanent non-industrial staff currently paid by the Home Office. It does not include staff on loan or secondment to other Government Departments or external bodies where those bodies pay. For the Prison Service, the figures include casuals. The Home Office (non-Prison Service) figures are those for 6 July 1997. The Prison Service figures are those for 30 June 1997.
(2) Students on attachment to the Home Office and some other grades have no agreed grade equivalency.
(3) Currently no grade has been provided.
(4) Grades which were held to be equivalent to the old grades 2 to 4 but which have not been included in the senior civil service. These grades include HM inspectors.
(5) Mainly comprising senior health care staff.
Asylum Seekers
Dr. Harris:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 30 June, Official Report, column 11, how many in-country asylum applicants were detained under Immigration Act powers for one night or longer in (a) 1995 and (b) 1996. [8926]
21 Jul 1997 : Column: 389
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
I regret that reliable information on the number of in-country asylum applicants placed in detention for one night or longer could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to implement section 20 of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997. [9310]
Mr. Michael:
We will make an announcement shortly about the implementation of provisions of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 as well as a wider package of measures reflecting our approach to sentencing.
Mr. Hoyle:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of foxes killed per year (a) in total, (b) by shooting, (c) by hunting with hounds, (d) by road accidents and (e) other causes. [8577]
Mr. George Howarth:
We have made no such estimate and the information requested could not be determined except at disproportionate cost. Various estimates have been provided by organisations that support or oppose fox hunting.
It will be for Parliament to decide how any further detailed work--such as an estimate of this kind--should be taken forward.
Ms Walley:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on stationery provision in respect of paper items in each of the last five years. [8867]
Mr. Straw:
This information is not separately recorded in the Home Office accounting system, but details provided by our two main suppliers of general stationery indicate that approximately £600,000, excluding value added tax, was spent on paper items in the calendar year 1996.
Additional, but smaller, orders would have been placed with various other suppliers, but details of these and information about previous years are not available except at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to review (a) the law of consent regarding rape and (b) the use of the victim's sexual history in rape trials. [8801]
Mr. Michael
[holding answer 16 July 1997]: We are very concerned to ensure that the law on rape is effective in punishing and deterring crime and fair to victims. We have in the past laid down amendments aimed at reforming the law in this area and this remains our commitment. We have a number of competing priorities in this parliamentary Session and will need to look carefully as to when we could deal with this issue.
21 Jul 1997 : Column: 390
The law on consent in respect of rape, or the use of the sexual history of victims, is provided for in the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1976. Under that Act, no question may be asked about, or evidence adduced of, the complainant's previous sexual history with anybody except the defendant without the leave of the trial judge. A judge should grant leave only if he is satisfied that it would be unfair to the defendant to refuse to do so.
We will continue to examine how the law is applied. A Home Office research study into the process of rape cases is seeking to identify what factors influence whether a recorded rape leads to a conviction. Among the factors under examination are the use of the victim's sexual history in court and the importance of corroborative evidence where consent is disputed.
Mr. Luff:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 10 July, Official Report, column 523, for what reasons his Department is unable to calculate the employment generated by hunting with hounds. [8702]
Mr. George Howarth
[holding answer 15 July 1997]: Such information is not currently held centrally and could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost. Various estimates have been provided by organisations supporting or arguing against hunting with hounds. However, it will be for Parliament to determine how to take forward any further detailed work on the likely effects of a decision to ban hunting with hounds.
Ms Hodge:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what will be the role of civil servants in the referendum campaigns on devolution. [10247]
Mr. Kilfoyle:
The Government have today issued guidance to civil servants on their role and conduct during the devolution referendum campaigns. The guidance provides a generic set of principles which individual Departments can incorporate into guidance tailored to their particular needs and situations. It stresses that civil servants should conduct themselves in accordance with the civil service code, and is based on the need to maintain the political impartiality of the civil service and to ensure that public resources are not used for party political purposes. Copies of the guidance have been placed in the Libraries of the House, and are also available from the Vote Office.
Ms Hodge:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects to publish the second annual "Civil Service Fast Stream Recruitment" report. [10246]
Mr. Kilfoyle:
The annual "Civil Service Fast Stream Recruitment" report was placed in the Libraries of the House earlier today. It covers the year to 31 March 1997, reporting the results of fast stream competitions completed during that period and action undertaken for future competitions.
21 Jul 1997 : Column: 391
The report shows that the civil service continues to attract a strong field of applicants for both generalist and specialist schemes. The diversity of sources from which recruits are drawn continues to grow, with successful candidates from more than 60 different higher educational institutions. Good progress has also been made towards the goal of increasing the proportion of recruits to the generalist scheme who have scientific degree backgrounds.
Mr. Vaz:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many and what percentage of employees in the Government Car and Despatch Agency are (i) of Asian origin and (ii) of Afro-Caribbean origin. [8930]
Dr. David Clark:
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated under the terms of the framework document to the Government Car and Despatch Agency. I have asked its chief executive, Mr. Nick Matheson, to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Nick Matheson to Mr. Keith Vaz, dated July 1997:
Mr. Vaz:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many and what percentage of civil servants in each of grades one to five in his Department are of (a) Asian origin and (b) Afro-Caribbean origin. [9569]
Dr. Clark:
No employee in these grades in my Department has registered his or her origin as being Asian or Afro-Caribbean.
I have been asked by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to reply to your Parliamentary Question on the number and percentage of employees in the Government Car and Despatch Agency who are of Asian or Afro-Caribbean origin.
Our records show that the Agency currently employs 2 people of Asian origin (0.78 per cent. of the work force) and 3 people of Afro-Caribbean origin (1.18 per cent. of the work force).
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