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Information Commissioner
34. Helen Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the Government's plans for the role of the Information Commissioner. [116822]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The functions of the Information Commissioner are set out in the Freedom of Information Bill which is currently before Parliament. The Information Commissioner will have extensive powers to monitor and encourage good practice and to enforce compliance with the requirements of the Bill.
Security Industry
35. Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on regulation of the private security industry. [116823]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Our White Paper, "The Government's Proposals for Regulation of the Private Security Industry in England and Wales", published last year, sets out plans to introduce statutory regulation of the industry. The proposals include plans to establish a Private Security Industry Authority to be responsible for maintaining and improving standards within the industry, and for licensing people employed in the industry. We intend to introduce legislation as soon as parliamentary time permits.
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West Mercia Police
36. Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the funding of West Mercia police. [116824]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The West Mercia Police Authority have set a net budget of £125.7 million for 2000-01. This represents an increase of 7.9 per cent. on the budget for 1999-2000.
Police Numbers (London)
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers the Metropolitan Police will have by the end of 2000-01; and what the figure was in 1997. [116789]
Mr. Straw: In March 1997, the Metropolitan Police Service had a strength of 27,166. In March of this year, estimated strength was 26,034. From 1 April, 474 Metropolitan Police officers are being seconded to county constabularies as a result of the boundary changes to the Metropolitan Police District, bringing total numbers to 25,556. The Commissioner intends to maintain overall numbers at around this level for the current financial year.
In addition, administrative changes made by the new Commissioner should have the effect of putting an extra 300 officers on the streets by the end of the financial year.
Organised Crime
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the amount of organised crime in the UK that is organised by foreign nationals living in the UK; and if he will make a statement. [117823]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The threat posed to the United Kingdom by organised crime is assessed each year by the National Crime Intelligence Service (NCIS). NCIS's threat assessment for 1999 showed that while there was evidence of the involvement of foreign nationals, the major part of organised crime activity was carried out by British criminals based in the United Kingdom.
Freedom of Information Bill
Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consult interested parties about the contents of the publication scheme that his Department will be required to adopt under the Freedom of Information Bill. [117969]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The publication scheme which every public authority will be required to adopt and maintain under the provisions of clause 17 of the Freedom of Information Bill is an important part of the drive to greater openness across the whole of the public sector.
The Home Office publication scheme will be agreed with the Information Commissioner and will be developed in accordance with any advice and guidance which the Commissioner may issue.
Welsh Police Forces
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many police officers were in service in the Welsh police forces in (a) 1990 and (b) 1995; [118379]
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- (2) how many police officers are serving in police forces in Wales. [118399]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The information requested is given in the table:
| Year | Number of police officers |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 6,390 |
| 1995 | 6,289 |
| 1999 | 6,692 |
The figures given are strength for ordinary duty (full-time equivalent) as at 30 September.
Animal Experiments
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many licences were granted for LD50 tests in each of the last four years. [117851]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Since 1995, 14 licences have been issued authorising the LD50 (Organisation for European Co-Operation and Development Guideline 401) test as shown:
- 1995: 3
- 1996: 3
- 1997: 3
- 1998: 4
- 1999: 1
No licences authorising the test have been issued this year and we will no longer grant new licences for the test.
Metropolitan Police
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Metropolitan Police will appoint coroners' officers to the Southern District of Greater London to bring it up to full strength. [118243]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis informs me that the current compliment of nine coroners officers in the Southern District of Greater London is one below full strength. The single vacancy will be filled on 2 May 2000.
Criminal Records
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the results of his Department's impact assessment survey into the creation of the Criminal Records Bureau and the imposition of the enhanced criminal records certificate; and if he will make a statement. [118526]
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Mr. Charles Clarke: There has been widespread support for the establishment of the Criminal Records Bureau, and for the kind of information that it will make available to employers and organisations, often for the first time. Before we make Regulations later in the year to prescribe various matters including charges for certificates, we shall undertake a regulatory impact exercise to provide an up-to-date assessment of the implications. Interested sectors will be consulted, and the results will be made known.
Family Court Welfare Service
Mr. Livsey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the (a) document titles and (b) page references of Family Court Welfare Officer training material on Children Act contact and residence disputes which provide guidance on (i) how much time should be apportioned between parents after divorce and separation and (ii) how long it should take for this level of contact to be attained. [117804]
Mr. Boateng: There is no guidance which specifies the level or nature of contact to be recommended in a specific set of circumstances.
Mr. Livsey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what records have been kept by the Family Court Welfare Service for each of the last three years showing the levels of contact recommended between non-resident parents and their children in disputed access cases. [117803]
Mr. Boateng: No such records are kept and there is no requirement for probation services to do so.
Official Secrets Act
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been (a) charged and (b) convicted of offences for breaches of the Official Secrets Act in each of the last five years. [117259]
Mr. Boateng: Data on the numbers of persons charged are not collected centrally.
The available information comes from the Home Office court proceedings database which only identifies those defendants who were prosecuted under the Act for triable either-way offences. Between 1994 and 1998 inclusive it shows that there were three such prosecutions. In 1997, one person was prosecuted, convicted and given a custodial sentence. In 1998, two people were prosecuted of which one was convicted and given a custodial sentence.
Criminal Trials (Exhibits)
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what requirement there is for police authorities to retain exhibits used in criminal trials, once the trial is completed, for the purpose of any future appeal; and what requirement there is for the (a) victims of the crime concerned and (b) relatives of victims to be consulted concerning the retention and disposal of such exhibits where they were the property of the victim. [118560]
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Mr. Charles Clarke: Under the Criminal Appeals Rules 1968, the arrangements for the retention of exhibits in criminal proceedings pending appeal, are matters for the court to determine. The rules provide that exhibits must be retained for 35 days from the date of conviction or, if an appeal is lodged, until the determination of the appeal. The exhibits may be retained in the custody of the court, the person who produced the exhibit at the trial (prosecution or defence) or any other person and such arrangements can include provision for the inspection of the exhibit by any interested party.
Section 22 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) provides that where property has been seized or taken away by the police it may be retained so long as is necessary in all the circumstances. The section goes on to clarify that such property may be retained only while in use as evidence, for forensic examination, for investigation in connection with an offence, or in order to establish the lawful owner, and must not be retained if a photograph or copy would suffice for these purposes.
Policy on the return of property to the lawful owner is a matter for the police force concerned but I understand that every force has a clear policy regarding the disposal of property and is fully aware of the provision of section 22 of PACE. Moreover, guidance was issued to the police in 1997 on the disposal of property under the Police (Property) Regulations 1997, where the owner cannot be established and no competent court order has been made in respect of it.
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