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Drug Misuse (Prisons)
Mr. Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 17 January 2001, Official Report, column 272W, which prisons do not have a significant known level of dealing in unlawful drugs. [146713]
Mr. Boateng: Covert activity such as drug dealing is by nature very difficult to quantify. Figures from the random mandatory drug testing (RMDT) programme provide the best available measure of the levels of drug misuse. The table lists the establishments reporting rates of positive RMDT of less than five per cent. during each of the last two financial years.
| Establishment | April 1999 to March 2000 | April 2000 to November 2000 |
|---|---|---|
| Albany | 0.0 | 1.1 |
| Blantyre House | 0.7 | 2.2 |
| Cookham Wood | 0.6 | 2.5 |
| Dartmoor | 3.0 | 2.3 |
| Downview | 2.5 | 3.5 |
| East Sutton Park | 0.9 | 2.9 |
| Grendon | 3.9 | 4.4 |
| Haslar | 1.0 | 3.5 |
| Lancaster Farms | 3.2 | 4.6 |
| Moorland | 3.3 | 3.1 |
| Parkhurst | 1.6 | 4.5 |
| Rochester | 3.2 | 2.9 |
| Swinfen Hall | 2.8 | 3.2 |
| Usk/Prescoed | 4.0 | 2.0 |
| Verne | 3.5 | 3.4 |
| Wakefield | 1.8 | 3.3 |
| Werrington | 4.0 | 4.7 |
| Whatton | 0.9 | 3.1 |
Mr. Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 17 January 2001, Official Report, column 272W, in which prisons (a) a governor grade manager and (b) another member of staff have been charged under (i) section 8 of the Misuse Drugs Act 1971 and (ii) other provisions with supplying prisoners with illegal drugs. [146714]
Mr. Boateng: The Prison Service records available for the last two years show that no staff directly employed by the Service have been charged under section 8 of the
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Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. The Prison Service records for this period also show that six members of staff have been charged with other drug related offences.
Mr. Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 17 January 2001, Official Report, column 272W, if (a) he and (b) his officials have consulted the Crown Prosecution Service about the potential liability of management grade officers to prosecution under section 8 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. [146719]
Mr. Boateng: Prison Service Staff would be liable to prosecution under section 8 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 only if they took no action to stop illegal activities involving controlled drugs. I am satisfied that prisons operate effective strategies for preventing, as far as possible, the smuggling and using of drugs. Consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service is therefore unnecessary.
Departmental Surveys
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for (a) 1992-93, (b) 1993-94, (c) 1994-95, (d) 1995-96, (e) 1996-97, (f) 1997-98, (g) 1998-99, (h) 1999-2000 and (i) 2000-01, (I) his Department's total spending on quantitative and qualitative surveys of policy issues by focus groups, opinion polling, task forces or other means and (II) the cost of each individual project. [146591]
Mr. Straw: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Bath (Mr. Foster) on 8 June 2000, Official Report, column 373W. Further work would incur disproportionate cost.
Alcohol
Mr. Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it an offence for an adult to purchase alcohol for children aged under 18 years; and if he will make it a statement. [146575]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Licensing Act 1964 made it an offence for anyone to buy or attempt to buy alcohol for consumption in a bar in licensed premises by a minor. The Licensing (Young Persons) Act 2000, which came into force on 23 January, created a new offence of buying or attempting to buy alcohol in licensed premises on behalf of a person under 18. There will continue to be an exemption from these offences in respect of any adult who buys beer, porter or cider for a person aged 16 or 17 years of age for consumption at a meal in a part of licensed premises which is not the bar and is usually set aside for the service of meals.
Fireworks
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many successful prosecutions have taken place with regard to (a) fireworks causing distress to animals under the Protection of Animals Act 1911 in each year from 1990 to date and (b) throwing or setting off fireworks in the street under section 80 of the Explosives Act 1875. [146683]
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Mr. Charles Clarke: Information collected centrally on the Home Office Court Proceedings Database does not identify the act of cruelty involved where offenders have been convicted under the Protection of Animals Act 1911.
Available information showing the number of persons prosecuted at magistrates courts and convicted at all courts for the throwing or setting off of fireworks in the street are given in the table.
| Prosecutions | Convictions | Conviction rate(29) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 65 | 52 | 80 |
| 1991 | 34 | 27 | 79 |
| 1992 | 19 | 14 | 74 |
| 1993 | 10 | 5 | 50 |
| 1994 | 22 | 16 | 73 |
| 1995 | 24 | 18 | 75 |
| 1996 | 43 | 34 | 79 |
| 1997 | 74 | 49 | 66 |
| 1998 | 52 | 36 | 69 |
| 1999 | 42 | 27 | 64 |
(29) Offenders convicted as a proportion of the number prosecuted
Throwing, casting or firing any fireworks in or into any highway, street, etc. public place--S.80 the Explosive Act 1875
Source:
Home Office Court Proceedings Database
Graffiti
Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with (a) senior police officers and (b) local authorities concerning graffiti-related criminal damage; and if he will make a statement. [146492]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The Home Secretary and I have regular discussions with senior police officers and others on issues of crime and disorder. However, no recent discussions have been held concerning graffiti.
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Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will review his decision not to issue guidance to paint spray manufacturers and retailers concerning age limits on the sale of their products. [146491]
Mr. Charles Clarke: No. The Government believe that tackling graffiti is best achieved by dealing with offenders rather than penalising retailers for selling a product that they may, in all honesty, believe is being purchased for legitimate reasons. There are no statutory age limits for the purchase of these products and it is not therefore appropriate to issue guidance to retailers.
Ping Hughston
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason the IND has failed to determine the application by a constituent, Ping Hughston, within the time period specified; and if he will make a statement. [146634]
Mrs. Roche: Mrs. Hughston's application for indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom was lodged on 1 December 2000 and completed on 10 January 2001. The application form that she submitted states that straightforward applications should be completed within three weeks of receipt, while cases which require further consideration are on average being completed within 12 weeks. Her case was not straightforward as it was considered outside the Immigration Rules yet was completed within six weeks.
Fraud
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many successful prosecutions have been brought in each year since 1995 for conspiracy to defraud; and how many and what percentage, of offenders were sentenced to prison terms of over (a) 20, (b) 15 and (c) 10 years. [146838]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Available court data, taken from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database, covering "conspiracy to defraud" offences under Common Law and s12 of the Criminal Justice Act 1987 are given in the table. Both offences carry maximum custodial sentences of 10 years.
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| Length of custodial sentence | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total proceeded against | Total convicted | Conviction rate(31) | Total sentenced(32) | Immediate custody | Under 10 years | 10 years(33) |
| 1995 | 1,003 | 383 | 38 | 384 | 262 | 262 | -- |
| 1996 | 1,069 | 477 | 45 | 477 | 350 | 350 | -- |
| 1997 | 1,119 | 500 | 45 | 500 | 325 | 325 | -- |
| 1998 | 1,175 | 466 | 40 | 466 | 313 | 313 | -- |
| 1999 | 1,174 | 420 | 36 | 419 | 275 | 275 | -- |
(30) Offences under Common Law and s12 of the Criminal Justice Act 1987
(31) Total convicted as a proportion of total proceeded against
(32) Sentencing may take place after conviction. In a small number of cases sentencing will occur in a later year than the relevant conviction
(33) The maximum sentence for both offences is 10 years imprisonment.
Source:
Home Office Court Proceedings Database
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