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Metropolitan Police
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the Metropolitan Police Commissioner regarding the circumstances in which a picture of armed police officers making an arrest appeared on the front page of the Daily Mail on 22 July; and what charges have arisen from the incident. [93267]
Kate Hoey: The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police tells me that he understands that a member of the public took the photograph and passed it to the Daily Mail. No charges have yet arisen from the incident which was photographed.
Freedom of Information
Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received on the draft Freedom of Information Bill proposing the (a) repeal and (b) amendment of Clause 28(7) of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974. [93281]
Mr. Straw: I have received one representation referring to section 28(7) of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 in the course of the consultation on the draft Freedom of Information Bill. This response, from the Health and Safety Commission, recorded their desire for the removal of the restriction in section 28 of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974, subject to certain minimum safeguards against prejudice to their enforcement and regulatory functions.
It is intended that the Freedom of Information Bill will be used to repeal or amend many existing statutory prohibitions on disclosure, where appropriate.
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All statutory prohibitions are currently being reviewed to see if they would be suitable candidates for repeal or amendment. Section 28 of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 has been considered as part of this review and the statutory prohibition on disclosure contained in it is a strong candidate for repeal or amendment under the draft Freedom of Information Bill.
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) on how many occasions his Department has issued consent certificates to remove the rule of specialty in respect of extradition proceedings where consent was granted to (a) the Irish Republic and (b) other countries which have extradition treaties with the United Kingdom; [92949]
Kate Hoey
[holding answer 26 July 1999]: It is very rare to depart from the rule of specialty in respect of extradition proceedings. Formal certification to waive the rule is only required in relation to our extradition arrangements with Ireland, where in recent years just two such certificates have been issued.
In one of these cases, the offence for which specialty was waived related to a suspected murder. In this case, the Irish authorities knew of the offence at the time of the request, but had insufficient information to include it with other lesser offences listed in the request for the individual's return. In the other case, the waiver certificate is currently subject to court proceedings, and so I cannot comment as the matter is sub judice.
Figures relating to other countries are not recorded. Officials estimate that there have been three or four specialty waivers in the past three years, but exact numbers, and the reasons for them, could only be obtained with disproportionate cost.
Sir Richard Body:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if it is his policy to advise cab-drivers and owners in the metropolitan area when re-applying for their licence of the possibility of refusal of licence in cases where the cab displays the St George's Flag. [93271]
Kate Hoey:
The issuing of licences for London taxis is a matter for the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. He informs me that the Public Carriage Office advise cab-drivers and owners, when they first apply for a licence, that their vehicle must comply with the Metropolitan Conditions of Fitness. The Conditions of Fitness prohibit the display of national emblems. Licences must be renewed annually and the application form carries a reminder that Conditions of Fitness must be met.
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Mr. Dalyell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received on the safety of (a) CS gas spray and (b) MIBK from the Chief Constable of Northamptonshire. [92318]
Mr. Boateng:
The Chief Constable of Northamptonshire has decided not to issue CS spray to officers in his force. He has corresponded with my officials about this decision and submitted a report to the relevant sub-committee of the Association of Chief Police Officers in 1998 setting out his concerns.
Mr. Dalyell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received about the length of time for which research on CS gas spray and MIBK should have continued before they were judged safe; and what timescales were suggested. [92319]
Mr. Boateng:
A wide range of research has been conducted into the safety of CS which has not raised concerns in respect of its effects on human health. MIBK is an industrial solvent and has also been extensively researched for adverse health effects. I am not aware of any specific representations concerning the length of time for which particular research programmes should be conducted.
Fiona Mactaggart:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will seek to amend the British Nationality Act 1981 to restore the principle of ius soli for the acquisition of citizenship. [93654]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
No. It is our policy to restrict the acquisition of citizenship by birth in this country to children whose parents have real and substantial connections with the United Kingdom. Children born here with non-British citizen or non-settled parents can become British either through residence or when a parent becomes a British citizen or settled here.
Helen Jackson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what statistics or other information have been evaluated by (a) the Home Office and (b) police forces regarding (i) assaults or other crimes committed on public footpaths and (ii) cases where public footpaths have been used as a means of access to property where a burglary or other crime has been committed. [93809]
Mr. Boateng:
The information is not collected centrally by the Home Office. The British Crime Survey collects information on offences against individuals by location, but does not hold the information specifically for public footpaths. Information collected by the police is a matter for the respective Chief Officers, although those forces with geographical information systems are more likely to have information at this level of detail.
Jackie Ballard:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has established a baseline for policy appraisal against which to measure progress on equal treatment. [93458]
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Mr. Straw:
Yes. Targets are being set for the recruitment, promotion, and retention of ethnic minority staff directly employed by my Department, and in respect of services for which my Department has oversight, including the police, prison service, fire service, and probation service.
'Policy Appraisal for Equal Treatment', published by the Cabinet Office, the Home Office, the Department for Education and Employment and the Women's Unit in November 1998, has been circulated to all senior managers at Grade seven level and above within my Department to ensure that the effects of any policy changes on all sections of the population are considered at the earliest stage of policy development.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to ensure that the number of community police officers in the Sutton and Cheam constituency is maintained and that those officers continue to be dedicated to their main duties. [93308]
Kate Hoey:
This is an operational matter for the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. He advises me that the number of community officers in Sutton and Cheam will be maintained and that redeployment of them under mutual aid arrangements is being kept to a minimum.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the Metropolitan Police to supply new Kat neighbourhood watch reflective street signs and window stickers showing the meerkat logo to neighbourhood watch members in the constituency of Sutton and Cheam. [93310]
Kate Hoey:
The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police tells me that the new Meerkat neighbourhood watch window stickers have been distributed to all divisions.
(2) if he will list the legal causes upon which consent certificates were granted in extradition proceedings on account of (a) the extradited person making known an outstanding offence not known to the requesting authority, (b) the requesting authority discovering an offence which was not known to them at the time of the initial extradition request and (c) any other reason. [92950]
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