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Asylum Seekers
9. Mr. Allan: What plans he has to revise the practice of keeping asylum seekers in prison. [11665]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: A review of detention policy, including the use of prisons, is being undertaken. Interested groups have been asked to comment on the principal proposals and the final conclusions will be made known shortly.
Mr. Allan: Is it the Minister's intention to consult Her Majesty's chief inspector of prisons on his view of the
use of prison and detention centres for asylum seekers? Under the review, is it still intended to minimise the use of prison in line, with the Home Secretary's commitment to the Charter '87 group for refugees?
Mr. O'Brien: The answer to both questions is yes. I have discussed the detention review with Sir David Ramsbotham and asked him to compile some specific reports, including one into the situation at Campsfield, where there were some disturbances a few months ago. I have also asked him for some details of his views on the matter. The objective, as always, is to minimise the use of detention.
Mr. Malins: Many Conservative Members think that the Government are a soft touch for asylum seekers. Will the Minister confirm that it costs more than £500 a week to keep an asylum seeker in detention? How many asylum seekers are currently in detention and what is the total cost to the Exchequer? How long will the taxpayer put up with the fact that the Government appear so soft?
Mr. O'Brien: It sounds very much as though the hon. Gentleman is saying that the Government are a soft touch, which we are not, and then complaining that it costs too much to detain people. We detain the minimum number of people and ensure that we detain only those whom it is necessary to detain because of a fear that they might abscond. We were committed at the general election to maintaining firm immigration controls, we are committed to it today and we shall be committed to it throughout our time in office.
Mr. Linton: Does my hon. Friend the Minister agree that the real problem is that his predecessor left a backlog of 76,000 asylum cases that had not been dealt with when the Conservatives lost the general election?
Mr. O'Brien: That is certainly one of the key problems that we face in trying to resolve the difficulties of the asylum system. We have been handicapped not only by the backlog but by the complexities of the Dublin convention, which came into force on 1 September and has made it much more difficult to return asylum seekers to other countries, causing many problems in Dover, for example. We have also inherited the system of having 28 days to deal with manifestly unfounded asylum claims; it is bizarre, but it was the previous Government's rule. We are at a loss to explain why they had it, but they did. They bequeathed us a messy asylum system, and we are intent on cleaning it up, sorting it out and making it work efficiently and effectively.
Crime Prevention
10. Mr. Amess: What recent representations he has received on measures taken by his Department in respect of crime prevention. [11666]
Mr. Michael: As of last Friday, 24 October, we had received 114 responses to our consultation document, "Getting to Grips with Crime--a New Framework for Local Action". I am especially pleased at the positive response from both the police and local authorities. A variety of representative and voluntary organisations
have responded positively to our invitation to join us in developing proactive strategies to cut crime. We have also had a positive response from many business leaders.
Mr. Amess: Is the Minister aware that policing in Westcliff and Leigh-on-Sea is shortly to be reorganised? Will he join me in congratulating all those involved in trying to improve the quality of people's lives by high-visibility, community-based, intelligence-led policing--all, I understand, at no extra cost to the Exchequer?
Mr. Michael: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his interest in the policing of Westcliff and Leigh-on-Sea, about which I would not otherwise have been as well informed. About a year ago, it was discovered that 25 per cent. of crime in the division was occurring on one beat in the town centre, and staffing levels were adjusted accordingly, although I understand that there is no reorganisation as such, leading to a cut of 14 per cent. in crime in that division last year. That is a good example of crime being analysed and properly understood--that is right at the heart of our policies--and then being tackled by the police, either alone or in conjunction with local authorities and others.
Mrs. Brinton: Does my hon. Friend agree that urgent measures are needed to combat youth crime, particularly after 18 years of Tory lawlessness and disorder? I should like to draw his attention to the state of siege in Kingsley road in Peterborough, where gangs of teenagers and children as young as 10 daily set houses on fire, burn out cars and force young families to flee their homes in the middle of the night leaving all their possessions. Will he ensure that the proposals for youth curfews are enforced when the crime and disorder Bill becomes law?
Mr. Michael: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her comments, and for the stress that she has placed on dealing with youth crime. That is a measure of the extent to which we have concentrated on youth crime and on preparation of measures in the crime and disorder Bill throughout the summer. We await comments on several consultation documents that include some of the measures that will address the problems to which she referred. The curfew proposals are practical and will work in the situations that she described, with youngsters of 10 and younger running roughshod around an area. We need to build confidence back into the system; we are determined to do that.
Mr. Evans: Has the Minister received any representations about the abuse of laser lights? I am sure that he has recently read in the newspapers about the abuse of what are normally presentational aids. When abused, they can cause temporary blindness; if stared at over even relatively short periods, they can cause more sinister damage to the eye. Will he ensure that his Department will spread the message loud and clear to people who abuse laser lights that they will face the full rigour of the law?
Mr. Michael: The hon. Gentleman raises an important point, which arises whenever something legitimately available for sensible business and other purposes is misused or abused to the detriment of other people.
The issue has certainly been raised with us, not least by the Police Superintendents Association. We are considering the medical evidence about the problems that can be caused and we wish to address the issue. We are awaiting evidence from some of the police associations about the extent to which their members have discovered problems. We need to understand the problem to address it properly. Many people will share the hon. Gentleman's concern.
Mr. Sutcliffe: Further to the point raised by the hon. Member for Ribble Valley (Mr. Evans), at the weekend in my constituency a laser pen was pointed into the eyes of a bus driver, who was temporarily blinded. While I accept what my hon. Friend says about what his Department can do, will he ask the Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs to look at the availability of those pens and at who can buy them?
Mr. Michael: My hon. Friend makes a good point: we need to work across Departments. That is why I mentioned that we are discussing items that are available for legitimate use but that are being used by some people in the wrong way. We shall certainly consult colleagues about the best way to respond to the problem highlighted by the incident in his constituency.
Scottish Parliament
12. Mr. Dalyell: What consultation he has had with the Scottish Office since the referendum on the transfer of those responsibilities which are currently his to the Scottish Parliament. [11668]
Mr. Straw: Our proposals for devolution are set out in the White Paper, "Scotland's Parliament". There are no plans for my responsibilities to be transferred to the Scottish Parliament.
Mr. Dalyell: What will be the demarcation between Edinburgh and Westminster in relation to the delicate issue of responsibility for drugs?
Mr. Straw: The White Paper, "Scotland's Parliament" makes it clear that the criminal law in relation to drugs will be a reserved matter and will remain the responsibility of my Department. The Scottish Executive will inherit the current responsibilities of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Lord Advocate. Those responsibilities include drug misuse, health, treatment and education, as well as responsibility for the police and prosecution authorities' enforcement in Scotland of drug misuse legislation, which will be set by this House and Parliament.
Mr. Hogg: Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that, if the Government's proposals for devolution are enacted, the House will have no say over policies relating to Home Office type affairs, which are now the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Scotland? Would it not be wrong, therefore, for Scottish Members of Parliament sitting in this House to have any say on Home Office affairs in so far as they relate to England?
Mr. Straw: I do not accept the assumption behind the right hon. and learned Gentleman's question, not least
because I have made it clear that issues of criminal law relating to drugs will be a reserved matter for this Parliament. Therefore, it is entirely right that Members of Parliament, whichever constituencies they represent, should not only speak but vote on those matters.
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