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HOME DEPARTMENT
Departmental Staff (Ethnic Origin)
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will provide a breakdown, in numerical and percentage terms, of the ethnic origin, at 1 March, of (a) his Private Office, (b) Government special advisers, (c) his policy unit and (d) staff in total. [78498]
Mr. Straw: A voluntary self-classification system is used to record the ethnic origin of staff in the Home Office. For my Private Office 1 the breakdown of staff by ethnic origin on 22 March is set out in the table. As the numbers of staff with ethnic minority origins within Private Office are small, only a percentage of staff are shown to protect the privacy of individuals (in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Civil Service Ethnic Monitoring Code of Practice).
| Ethnic origin | Percentage in Private Office |
|---|---|
| Asian-Bangladeshi | 1.6 |
| Asian-Chinese | 1.6 |
| Asian-Indian | 6.6 |
| Asian-Other | 1.6 |
| Asian-Pakistani | 3.3 |
| Black-Caribbean | 5 |
| All Ethnic Minority Groups | 20 |
| White | 80 |
(1) Ministerial Secretariat (including the Permanent Secretary's Office)
(2) Of those whose ethnicity is recorded 89.5 per cent. of Private Office staff
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With regard to special advisers, I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Brent, East (Mr. Livingstone) by my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 22 February 1999, Official Report, column 39.
With regard to Home Office staff as a whole, I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to him by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office on 31 March 1999, Official Report, columns 710-11.
Mr. Fallon:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many international warrants for arrest and extradition are held by Interpol for citizens of the United Kingdom. [78794]
Kate Hoey:
I am advised by the National Criminal Intelligence Service that there are currently in circulation 107 Interpol notices in respect of persons who are United Kingdom citizens by birth. This is a figure for notices issued by Interpol bureaux world-wide, under what is known as the Red Notice procedure. In some countries, not including the United Kingdom, a Red Notice may serve as a provisional warrant of arrest for extradition purposes.
Mr. Fallon:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the procedures by which (a) Her Majesty's Government and (b) the citizen concerned are notified of international warrants for arrest and extradition held by Interpol in respect of UK citizens. [78791]
Kate Hoey:
This is an operational matter as between Interpol bureaux world-wide. There is no procedure whereby Her Majesty's Government are notified that a United Kingdom citizen is the subject of an Interpol notice. The person concerned will become aware of the fact if and when he is located and arrested.
Mr. Malins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many telephone lines exist at the Immigration and Nationality Directorate offices in Croydon. [79303]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
The Immigration and Nationality Directorate Croydon has 377 telephone lines; these are:
Mr. Malins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many telephone operators work at the Immigration and Nationality Directorate offices in Croydon. [79302]
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Mr. Mike O'Brien:
There are currently fifty-nine officers dealing with telephone inquiries received in the Integrated Casework Directorate based in Croydon. However, approximately 25 per cent. of an operator's time is spent on written work and therefore away from the telephone. In addition, the Croydon estate has two operators who deal with non casework telephone traffic.
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to tackle the backlog of work at Lunar House; and over what period. [80395]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
I have set up a task team of senior officials and Siemens Business Services to determine the measures necessary to improve services substantially and to tackle the backlog of cases. Steps already taken include special exercises to target priority cases such as work permit applications, changes in procedures that will result in higher productivity, and increased staffing. Levels of service to the public are gradually being restored and improved.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what representations he has made to (a) United Kingdom, (b) European Union and (c) other international business organisations regarding clandestine entrants seeking to enter the United Kingdom through consignments; [78612]
Mr. Mike O'Brien
[holding answer 29 March 1999]: I have had a number of meetings with representatives of the road haulage industry and officials meet regularly with this group and with representatives of shipping and air transport companies. I understand that the transportation companies in their turn have discussions with their customers. There has been little, if any, direct contact between the Home Office and individual businesses regarding the problems of clandestine entrants; and we have not made any separate representations or issued separate advice to those bodies, beyond the representations and advice given to hauliers and other transportation companies.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the extent to which clandestine entrants change vehicles during ferry crossings. [78614]
Mr. Mike O'Brien
[holding answer 29 March 1999]: Neither the Immigration Service nor the major ferry operator at Dover has presented any evidence that would support the suggestion that clandestine entrants change vehicles during ferry crossings. It would be difficult for would-be clandestine entrants to leave one vehicle and enter another on a well-lit car ferry deck monitored by Closed Circuit Television cameras without being seen, and the individuals concerned would gain no advantage by doing so.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has given to lorry drivers and the road haulage industry as to (a) how to deal
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with clandestine entrants discovered in vehicles on entry to the United Kingdom and (b) the physical risk to drivers in such circumstances. [78610]
Mr. Mike O'Brien
[holding answer 29 March 1999]: The advice given to date relates to safeguards to prevent would-be illegal entrants from securing entry in the first place. Where a driver discovers people in his vehicle whom he suspects may have entered the country illegally, he should inform the police or the local immigration office.
I welcome the fact that the Freight Transport Association has issued guidance to its members. The Immigration Service will be working closely with the FTA and the Road Haulage Association to develop the proposed Code of Practice. In doing so, they will draw on the FTA's helpful advice.
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has made to ferry operators in the last 12 months on improving security to prevent clandestine entrants gaining access to the United Kingdom; and if he will list the measure taken as a result. [78611]
Mr. Mike O'Brien
[holding answer 29 March 1999]: Immigration Service staff are in regular contact with the major ferry operators arriving at Dover. Following discussions about clandestine immigration through Belgian ports, a number of changes have been made to port security procedures at Ostend and Zeebrugge. These include increased police patrols on access roads, night patrols in the port area and systematic loading checks. I understand that ferry operators have also met the Calais Chamber of Commerce to discuss improving security at that port.
265 telephone lines which can take incoming calls
25 telephone lines reserved for members of the public making general immigration inquiries or inquiries about progress of a particular case
5 telephone lines for requests for an Application Form
10 lines for inquiries from employers about Immigration Law
12 lines giving recorded information about the more common type of inquiry
60 telephone lines which are reserved for outgoing calls
5,500 telephone extensions which can be directly dialled from outside.
(2) what advice he has given to United Kingdom businesses concerned in the consignment of goods to the United Kingdom through European Union ports of embarkation about the prevention of clandestine entrants. [78613]
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