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Child Road Casualties
Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many child road casualties there have been in the last year for which figures are available in Stoke-on-Trent North; and if he will make a statement on progress towards meeting his 2010 target for reducing such casualties. [127071]
Mr. Hill: I have been asked to reply.
Data for Stoke-on-Trent North are not available. The number of child road casualties for Stoke-on-Trent Unitary Authority are given in the table:
| Severity of casualty | |
|---|---|
| Fatal | 2 |
| Serious | 27 |
| Slight | 188 |
| Total | 217 |
The new road safety strategy "Tomorrow's roads--safer for everyone", published in March, sets out a range of measures to meet the target of halving the number of children killed or seriously injured in road accidents by 2010, compared with the average for 1994-98. Many of these measures are now being taken forward but it is too soon to quantify any casualty savings.
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Young Offender Units
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to end the practice in young offender units of holding two prisoners in cells designed for one; and when he expects this practice to end. [127143]
Mr. Boateng: Due to current population pressures there are no immediate plans to end the practice of holding two prisoners in cells designed for one at some young offender units.
Dartmoor Prison
Dr. Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who is the Chair of the Board of Visitors at Dartmoor Prison. [127166]
Mr. Boateng: The Chairman of the Board of Visitors at Her Majesty's Prison Dartmoor for the period 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2000 is Mr. Michael Long.
Internet (Interception)
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department under what circumstances the Government will require internet service providers to contribute to (a) capital and (b) recruitment costs of security surveillance; and what the charging principles will be. [127328]
Mr. Straw: I have published a detailed report into the technical and financial considerations involved in interception on the internet, on Home Office website, www.homeoffice.gov.uk/oicd/ripbill.htm. Comments have been received from the Internet Service Providers Association and my officials have started a dialogue with
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wider industry representatives under the auspices of the Alliance for Electronic Business. There is agreement to set up a body, with industry participation, to advise on the technical, functional and procedural implementation of Clause 12 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill. Depending on detailed discussions in that group and outside, and bearing in mind the need for equity across the entire communications industry, the Government will take a view on what contribution from internet service providers will be appropriate for capital costs. That process will also inform decisions on recruitment costs.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the estimates of (a) the capital costs and (b) the running costs of internet service providers, establishing a surveillance capability as required under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill. [127331]
Mr. Straw: Our estimate of the total costs to communication service providers, not currently classified as public telecommunications operators, of establishing an intercept capability under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill is that it will not exceed £20 million in aggregate over the first three years. I have published a report on the Home Office website detailing some cost and technical implications of interception on the internet. My officials have been in contact with The Alliance for Electronic Business and the Internet Service Providers Association over the establishment of an advisory board to consider further the technical, functional and procedural implementation of Clause 12 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill.
Fire Service (London)
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is for planning purposes of net pension fund obligations, pensions less contribution, for (a) the London Fire Service and (b) all UK fire services in financial years (a) 2000-01, (b) 2001-02, (c) 2005-06 and (d) 2010-11; and how these obligations will be financed. [127322]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The available figures, provided by the Local Government Association's Fire Service Expenditure Forecasting Group, are:
| 2000-01 | 2001-02 | |
|---|---|---|
| London | 65.3 | 73.5 |
| England | 250 | 275 |
Under the Central Local Partnership the Home Office works closely with the Forecasting Group to assess future resource demands for the following three years. The Group does not prepare longer range projections. Its assessments of future funding pressures, including pensions, are taken into account by the Government in the Spending Review process.
The provision of revenue funding for the fire services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the devolved Administrations.
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Metropolitan Police
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what were the monthly changes in each of the last two years in Metropolitan police manpower figures, resulting from (a) recruitment and (b) resignation and retirement. [127346]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The requested details are not available. Details for the four six-month periods up to September 1999 are given in the tables.
| Police strength for ordinary duty(13) | |
|---|---|
| 30 September 1997 | 26,677 |
| 31 March 1998 | 26,094 |
| 30 September 1998 | 26,106 |
| 31 March 1999 | 26,073 |
| 30 September 1999 | 25,884 |
(13) Full-time equivalents
| 1998 | 1999 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 March | 30 September | 31 March | 30 September | |
| Recruitment(14) | 503 | 866 | 763 | 566 |
| Wastage(14) | ||||
| Resignation | 118 | 174 | 147 | 182 |
| Retirement | 528 | 592 | 473 | 409 |
| Other | 176 | 170 | 169 | 124 |
(14) Number of Officers
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) new recruits, (b) graduate recruits and (c) graduate recruits with first or upper second class degrees to the Metropolitan Police in each of the last five years. [127329]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The table shows the number of new recruits and graduate recruits into the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) for the last five years:
| Year | Appointments on probation | Graduates on probation |
|---|---|---|
| 1994-95 | 1,209 | (15)-- |
| 1995-96 | 1,212 | 141 |
| 1996-97 | 670 | (15)-- |
| 1997-98 | 1,164 | 46 |
| 1998-99 | 1,586 | 81 |
(15) Information for these years is not available
Information on graduates with first or upper second class degrees is not held centrally or by the MPS.
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what real terms changes there have been on an annual basis since 1990 in the funding of the Metropolitan Police Service. [127238]
Mr. Straw [holding answer 22 June 2000]: The information set out has been provided by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
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| Year | Cash terms (£ million) | Percentage change in real terms |
|---|---|---|
| 1990-91 | 1,240 | 8.0 |
| 1991-92 | 1,374 | 4.3 |
| 1992-93 | 1,491 | 5.0 |
| 1993-94 | 1,561 | 2.0 |
| 1994-95 | 1,624 | 2.6 |
| 1995-96 | 1,660 | -0.7 |
| 1996-97 | 1,664 | -2.9 |
| 1997-98 | 1,717 | 0.4 |
| 1998-99 | 1,792 | 1.0 |
| 1999-2000(16) | 1,827 | -0.5 |
| 1999-2000(17) | 1,778 | -- |
| 2000-2001 | 1,844 | (18)-1.3 |
(16) Actual
(17) Notional
(18) Funding for 1999-2000 is not directly comparable with 2000-01 and previous years since with effect from 1 April 2000 the territory of the Metropolitan Police Service was redrawn to increase the Greater London Area only. Responsibility for policing about one third of Surrey and smaller parts of Hertfordshire and Essex has now been transferred to the respective county forces. Taking account of these, funding has increased in real terms by 1.4 per cent. in 2000-01. Excluding £8.5 million for the CFF and £4 million for PNC charges, funding for 2000-01 would be £1,832 million. This is the equivalent of a 3 per cent cash increase/1 per cent. real terms increase of 1999-2000 after allowing for the boundary changes (and 1.9 per cent in cash terms over funding and the use of reserves in 1999-2000). Percentage changes in real terms have been calculated at 1998-99 prices using GDP deflators (March 2000).
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