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Asylum Seekers
Mr. Gerrard:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the organisations and individuals who have made submissions to the
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review of the detention of asylum seekers; and when he expects to (a) announce and (b) publish the findings of the review; [17419]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
At the beginning of September, I wrote to 12 non-governmental organisations inviting their comments on the major policy areas covered by the detention review. Submissions have been received from the following groups:
A number of other bodies have put forward submissions on this issue, both before and during the review.
Consideration is now being given to the comments received. I expect to be able to announce the results in the new year.
Mr. Gerrard:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what issues relating to asylum are currently under review; which Government Departments are involved; and what are the terms of reference of each review group. [17420]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
All the issues relating to asylum are under review, especially the procedures for dealing with asylum claims and the means of supporting asylum seekers while their claims are being assessed. The Government Departments which have provided members of the study team are the Home Office; Department of the Environment, Transport and Regions; Department of Health; Department of Social Security; and the Cabinet Office. Departments represented on the Steering Group which is overseeing the study team's work, in addition to those already listed, are the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; the Lord Chancellor's Department; Department for Education and Employment; and Her Majesty's Treasury.
The terms of reference are: to carry out a scrutiny of the arrangements for dealing with and providing for asylum seekers to assess how these might be improved to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the arrangements taken as a whole, and to identify ways of minimising costs across government with a view to containing those costs well within the total provision for asylum seekers in existing Departmental programmes. In particular:
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We are also conducting internal reviews of detention policy and of the immigration and asylum appeals system.
Mr. Sheerman:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans his Department has to review the sentencing procedures for lesser motoring offences resulting in (a) deaths and (b) injury not taken into consideration in sentencing. [18589]
Mr. Michael:
The Government have no plans to review sentencing procedure for lower level motoring offences resulting in death and injury. Sentencing procedure in individual cases is a matter for the courts. A range of offences exist to deal with those who commit motoring offences, with severe penalties available for serious offences. For example, causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs and causing death by dangerous driving carry maximum penalties of ten years' imprisonment.
The North Report in 1988 considered, but rejected, the creation of a new offence of causing death by careless driving. It concluded that it would be wrong to visit on a driver severe penalties for the tragic consequences of an act which amounted only to carelessness.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders convicted of offences including (a) sex and (b) violence were sentenced to periods of imprisonment of over four years in the last year for which figures are available. [18847]
Mr. Michael:
For England and Wales in 1996 (latest available), of the 4,426 offenders convicted of indictable sexual offences, 635 were sentenced to periods of immediate custody of over four years, of whom 17 recorded life sentences.
Similarly, for the indictable offence group of violence against the person, 30,011 offenders were convicted, of whom 944 were sentenced to periods of imprisonment of over four years, including 267 life sentences.
Ms Beverley Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will review the current policy and practice of the police in providing the media with the names of victims of crimes. [17933]
Mr. Michael
[holding answer 2 December 1997]: The Home Office is currently considering whether new central guidance to the police on relations with the media would be valuable. The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) has been asked for its views. Currently, the ACPO Media Advisory Group advises chief officers that, wherever possible, they should consider the wishes of the victim in deciding whether to publicise a crime and the identity of the victim and respect the victim's wishes if
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he or she does not wish his or her personal details to be given any publicity. Some police forces, as a matter of policy, do not release the names of victims. I understand that Greater Manchester Police issue guidance to all their officers to the effect that the names of victims should not be released to the press without their consent.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what (a) has been the total cost of compensation paid to date and (b) estimate he has made of that to be paid to the end of 1997-98 under the Firearms Acts. [19102]
Mr. Michael:
As at 28 November, £25.4 million had been paid out in compensation. The current estimate of compensation payments in 1997-98 is £115 million. This figure will be reviewed in the new year in the light of further progress on the processing of payments.
Mr. Beith:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has undertaken on the level of the public's satisfaction with the use of community penalties; and if he will make a statement. [18637]
Ms Quin
[holding answer 3 December 1997]: The Home Office has not itself recently undertaken research designed to investigate the level of public satisfaction with the use of community penalties. But studies such as that by Professor Hough published in the Howard Journal of Criminal Justice (Vol. 35 No. 3 1996) confirm that these penalties are not as widely understood or valued as they should be.
Mr. Fraser:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from charities regarding the introduction of rapid draw lotteries. [18811]
Mr. George Howarth
[holding answer 3 December 1997]: As at 1 December, we have received representations from 22 charities; 20 of these stand to benefit from the introduction of Pronto and two do not wish to be associated with it.
Mr. Rowe:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to establish the national accreditation bodies for youth organisations recommended by Lord Cullen. [19000]
Mr. Michael:
The recommendation for the national accreditation of clubs and groups voluntarily attended by children and young people is under consideration by the Government.
Ms Blears:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to alter the composition of Parole Board panels considering the release of mandatory life sentence adult prisoners. [19593]
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Ms Quin:
The Parole Board is facing a continuing and significant increase in its work load. A very important element of that overall work load is the task of advising Ministers on the progression and release of adult life sentence prisoners convicted of murder. At present, the panels considering these cases comprise four members of the Board, always including a judge and a psychiatrist.
(2) what is the timetable for the inter-departmental review of the detention of asylum seekers. [17461]
United Nations High Commission for Refugees
Amnesty International
Immigration Advisory Service
The Law Society
The Refugee Council
Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants
Churches Commission for Racial Justice
Refugee Legal Centre
Charter 87
Immigration Law Practitioners Association
to evaluate whether the existing allocation of responsibilities between Departments for processing and provision is the most conducive to efficient and cost-effective management and to recommend any options for improvement;
to recommend other changes to structures, incentives and information flow to enhance the overall efficiency of systems of processing and provision;
to develop costed proposals to reduce significantly both the time taken from the beginning to the end of the asylum process and the number of unfounded applications; and
to make recommendations on the most cost effective arrangements for providing for asylum seekers throughout the process, taking account of the impact of those arrangements on the numbers of applicants for asylum and the likely take-up.
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