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Departmental Public Service Agreements

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a revised list of his Department's public service agreements taking account of the conclusions of the Comprehensive Spending Review. [132352]

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Mr. Charles Clarke: My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will in the context of the Spending Review 2000 shortly publish a comprehensive list of public service agreements for all Government Departments.

Immigration and Nationality Directorate

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a revised table of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's objectives and annual targets as set out on pages 32 and 33 of the IND Annual report 1999 to take account of the conclusions of, and the period covered by, the Comprehensive Spending Review. [132353]

Mrs. Roche: The table at pages 32 and 33 of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) Annual Report 1999 lists the 21 business objectives and targets agreed for IND following the last Comprehensive Spending Review in 1998. They cover the three year period from April 1999 to March 2002. Following the announcement of the outcome of the 2000 Spending Review on 18 July, IND will work to develop similar objectives and targets for the next three years through to March 2004, supplementing those to be published in the Public Service Agreement and the Service Delivery Agreement.

Eighteen updated objectives and targets for this year are listed in the table. More details will be available in the IND Business Plan for 2000-01 which is to be published shortly. A copy will be placed in the Library. Details of IND's objectives and targets for the next three years will be published in future business plans.

The target for initial asylum decisions for this year has been revised upwards to 130,000-150,000 from the 65,000 in the last IND Business Plan. This will substantially clear the backlog. Funding for the increase is being provided as part of the £609 million extra for IND in the current financial year. That funding will also enable IND to increase the number of detention places. This is an essential element in the strategy to meet our target of removing 12,000 failed asylum seekers this year and at least 30,000 a year in the next three years.

These figures reflect the important changes introduced by the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. All entitlement of new asylum applicants to cash social security benefits ended on 3 April 2000. Public expenditure overall would be significantly higher if such entitlements continued.

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Immigration and Nationality DirectorateObjectives and Targets 2000-01

Number	Objective	Target
1.	To increase the number of asylum decisions	130,000-150,000
2.	To increase the percentage of substantive asylum applications decided within two months.	70 per cent. by March 2001
3.	To remove more failed asylum seekers.	12,000
4.	To increase decisions in nationality cases.	91,000
5.	To reduce the average time for granting citizenship.	12 months by March 2001
6.	To increase the number of non asylum after entry decisions.	205,000
7.	To increase the number of non asylum offenders removed.	3,500
8.	To maintain the unit cost in real terms of supporting an asylum seeker for a week.	£150 single £220 family
9.	To reduce the unit cost of immigration checks at ports.	£5.17
10.	To increase the percentage of inadequately documented passengers who are detected at locations where there are Airline Liaison Officers.	82 per cent.
11.	To reduce the number of occasions where non European Economic Area passengers have to wait more than 30 minutes.	1,455 or less
12.	To increase the percentage of detailed examinations (non asylum) which result in refusal.	64 per cent.
13.	To increase the percentage of non asylum refusals which result in removal.	92 per cent.
14.	To maintain the percentage of appealed decisions upheld.	85 per cent.
15.	To increase the number of prosecutions prepared against those facilitating breaches of the Immigration Rules.	115
16.	To increase the number of upper/middle enforcement operations.	15/40
17.	To increase the number of projects initiated against organised crime.	18
18.	To process asylum support claims within agreed timescales (from date of receipt).	70 per cent. within 2 days 100 per cent. within 7 days

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Performance Targets

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish revised tables of objectives and targets as set out in the Home Office Annual report 1999-2000, taking account of the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review. [132351]

Mr. Charles Clarke: Revised objectives and targets for the Home Office relating to the outcome of the Spending Review 2000 will be published in 2001 in the Home Office Business Plan for 2001-02.

Mr. Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department against what benchmark the achievement of targets for the local authority area reduction in crime set out in section 23 of the Comprehensive Spending Review will be judged. [132279]

Mr. Charles Clarke: Achievement of the target will be assessed against the national average domestic burglary rate for Crime and Disorder Partnerships which are published as part of the crime statistics every six months.

Convicted Prisoners (Possessions)

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the procedures applicable to the removal of property and papers from convicted prisoners while serving their sentences. [132282]

Mr. Boateng: The Prison Rules 43(5) and the Young Offender Institution Rules 45(4) allow Governors to confiscate any unauthorised article found in the possession of prisoners after their reception into prison, or concealed or deposited anywhere within a prison. Chapters 17 and 18 of the Security Manual, PSO 1000, contain procedural guidance on conducting searches and preserving evidence arising therefrom, and are available in the Library.

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if an inventory is maintained of property and papers removed from convicted prisoners while serving their sentences. [132281]

Mr. Boateng: While no central inventory exists for property and papers removed from prisoners, confiscated items are recorded on the individual searching sheets returns. Items of especial value are recorded in the local Heads of Management Services' offices.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many written parliamentary questions were tabled to his Department between 19 October 1999 and 20 April 2000 which requested information, pursuant to his previous answers. [132138]

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Mr. Straw: My Department received 130 questions between 19 October and 20 April 2000 which requested information pursuant to previous replies.

Sentencing

Mr. Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to fulfil the Government's commitment to extend the Attorney- General's powers to refer unduly lenient sentences to the Court of Appeal for review. [132678]

Mr. Charles Clarke: An Order extending the Attorney-General's powers in relation to unduly lenient sentences is being laid before Parliament today. This will enable the Attorney to refer sentences imposed for offences of illegal trafficking in drugs and pornographic material involving children and offences specifically against children (unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl under 16, inciting a girl under 16 to have incestuous intercourse and indecent conduct towards a young child). The Order comes into effect on 21 August 2000 and will apply to any sentence imposed after that date. The Government will keep under review whether further extensions should be made in future.

R18 Videos

Mr. Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will publish the consultation paper on the regulation of R18 videos; and if he will make a statement. [132679]

Mr. Straw: I have today placed in the Library copies of a Consultation Paper on the Regulation of R18 videos. As hon. Members will be aware, I was extremely disappointed with the High Court decision, on 16 may, which dismissed the British Board of Film Classification's application for Judicial Review in respect of appeals against their decision not to classify seven sexually explicit videos in the R (restricted) 18 category--which are available only in licensed sex shops. The Government maintain a firm commitment to the protection of children from unsuitable sexually explicit material and, in the light of the recent judgment, are publishing a consultation paper which examines a number of options to improve the safeguards for children from possible exposure to videos classified in the R (restricted) 18 category. The paper also suggests measures for modernising and strengthening the recruitment and appointment procedures of the Video Appeals Committee.

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