11 May 1999 : Column: 73
Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 11 May 1999
HOME DEPARTMENT
Extended Sentences
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many extended sentences have been passed on (a) sexual offenders and (b) violent offenders under the provisions of section 58 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. [83346]
Mr. Boateng: Section 58 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 was implemented on 30 September 1998. Provisional information taken from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database indicates that no extended sentences were imposed in the last three months of 1998. This is not surprising as the provisions apply only to offences committed after the commencement date, and therefore, few cases would have concluded in 1998. Data for 1999 are not yet available.
Sex Offender Orders
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sex offender orders have been (a) applied for and (b) made under section 2 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. [83347]
Mr. Boateng: To date, we are aware of three Sex Offender Orders having been granted. No information is held centrally to indicate the number of Sex Offender Orders which have been applied for.
Metropolitan Police
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the present number of police officer vacancies of all ranks within the Metropolitan police force; and if he will make a statement. [83370]
Kate Hoey: The Commissioner of the Metropolitan police has provided a comparison between the 31 March 1999 budgeted manpower target levels and actual strengths. It should be noted that the target figures may be varied during any year by the Metropolitan police's Policy Board and this will change the number of vacancies at any one time. Vacancies are filled by recruitment and selection processes.
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Computer Technology (Police)
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if all police divisions in England and Wales now have computer technology to communicate with each other; and if he will make a statement. [83368]
Mr. Boateng: I am advised by the Police Information Technology Organisation (PITO) that the majority of forces have access to either the X.400 Messaging Service, available on the Police National Network (PNN), or the Internet Mail System. All forces can also access the PNN Telephony Service and the Packet Data Service (X.25) which provides access to the Police National Computer. Internal data communication systems within individual forces vary in size and sophistication.
Corruption
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to ensure that (i) Article 2 and (ii) Article 6 of the European Convention on the Fight against Corruption are enforced in United Kingdom law; and which agency will have the task of (a) investigation and (b) prosecution of offences under these articles. [83569]
Mr. Boateng: Arrangements are underway for the United Kingdom to ratify the European Union Corruption Convention in September this year. The Convention does not give rise to the need for legislation in the United Kingdom.
Alleged offences of active or passive corruption of the kind referred to in Articles 2 and 6 of the European Union Corruption Convention are investigated primarily by the police whose role is to investigate offences which are committed within United Kingdom jurisdiction. Prosecutions are carried out by the usual prosecuting authorities, which in the main will be the Crown Prosecution Service. These procedures will continue in force following the ratification of the European Union Corruption Convention.
"Break the Chain" Campaign
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many copies of the leaflet associated with the "Break the Chain" campaign have been printed; and at what cost. [83567]
Kate Hoey:
751,000 copies of the leaflet "Break the Chain: what you can do about domestic violence" have been published in English and 30,000 in Welsh. The costs for the English version were £49,340 and for the Welsh, £5,040.
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Mr. Allan:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of self-harm occurred in prison between April 1998 and March 1999 broken down by (a) age, (b) gender and (c) category of prisoner. [83594]
Mr. George Howarth:
Self-harm statistics available centrally do not allow for a break down by age or by individual category of prisoner. The numbers of self-harm incidents reported by Prison Service establishments covering the period September 1997 to October 1998, the last 12 month period for which complete statistics are currently available, and broken down by broad prison category and gender, are given in the table.
| Number of incidents relating to | ||
|---|---|---|
| Broad category of prison | Female | Male |
| Closed training prison | 279 | 969 |
| Dispersal prison | 0 | 161 |
| Immigration detention centre | 0 | 6 |
| Local prison | 767 | 3,393 |
| Open training prison | 6 | 10 |
| Young offenders institution | 0 | 1,424 |
| Total | 1,052 | 5,963 |
Seclusion Rooms (Prisoners)
Mr. Chisholm: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for the period April 1998 to March 1999 (a) the number of occasions on which prisoners were placed in seclusion rooms and (b) the average number of hours spent per occasion in seclusion. [83692]
Mr. George Howarth: The available information, for the calendar year 1998, is for those inmates held in protective rooms and special cells for temporary confinement in prisons in England and Wales and is given in the table. Information on the average number of hours spent in such confinement is not centrally available.
| Type of confinement | 1998 |
|---|---|
| On medical grounds: | |
| Protective rooms for temporary confinement(2) | 375 |
| On non-medical grounds: | |
| Special cells/unfurnished cells (other than protective rooms) for temporary confinement(3) | 2,557 |
(1) Provisional data
(2) Under Rule 46(6), Prison Rules 1964, Rule 49(6) Young Offender Institution Rules, 1988. Number of times used where the period of confinement exceeded 24 hours.
(3) Under Rule 45, Prison Rules 1964, Rule 48 Young Offender Institution Rules, 1988. Number of times used.
Data Protection
Mr. Cohen:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the terms of reference of the review of the law on retaining personal data relating to DNA profiles taken from persons for elimination purposes; and if the Data Protection Registrar has been asked to contribute to the review. [83797]
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Mr. George Howarth:
There are no formal Terms of Reference for the review of current legislation. We intend to consult widely on any proposals for change, and this will include an approach to the Data Protection Registrar.
Mr. Cohen:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce regulations to prohibit unrestricted transfer of personal data from electoral rolls to persons in countries which offer an inadequate level of protection; what conclusion his departmental working party has reached on access to electoral data for non-electoral purposes; and if he will make a statement. [83796]
Mr. George Howarth:
The electoral register is by statute a public document and there is no provision to restrict subsequent transfers of information obtained from it. The Home Office Working Party on Electoral Procedures which I chair is looking at the question of access to electoral data for non-electoral purposes, and I expect it to report to my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary later in the summer on this and the other issues it is considering.
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