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Financial Services and Markets Act

Mrs. Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps the Treasury has taken in relation to making regulations setting out the recognition requirements which are to apply to investment exchanges and clearing houses and to making an Order prescribing the markets and qualifying investments to which the new market abuse regime will apply under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. [154422]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The regulations relating to recognition requirements for investment exchanges and clearing houses and the order relating to prescribed markets and qualifying investments were made by the Treasury and laid before Parliament today.

Vehicle Excise Duty

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason motorcycle vehicles over 250cc do not qualify for reduced vehicle excise duty; and if he will make a statement. [153781]

Mr. Timms: Motorcycles over 250cc pay 40 per cent. of the standard rate of vehicle excise duty levied on vehicles in the private and light goods vehicle class. Budget 2001 froze the rate at £65 per annum.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Mrs. Sari Conway

Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what offer of employment he has made to Mrs. Sari Conway. [151784]

Mrs. Roche: I cannot comment on an individual case.

Islington Police Division

Mr. Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the establishment level of (a) uniformed officers and (b) civilian staff was in Islington police division in (i) each year since 1996 and (ii) 2001 to date; and how many were actually in post in each category in each year. [153699]

Mr. Charles Clarke [holding answer 14 March 2001]: The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis has provided the information in the table. It is not possible for the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to provide information on the budgeted workforce targets (establishment) for the earlier years because the current

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Islington division was only created in 1999 out of the former Islington and Holloway divisions. The MPS have been able to provide strength figures for the former Islington and Holloway divisions for the years before 1999.

The Budgeted Workforce Target, or establishment, for the financial year 2001-02 has yet to be set.

Metropolitan police--Islington division

	Police officers(16),(17)		Civilian support staff(16)
As at 31 December	Budgeted workforce target	Actual officers in post	Budgeted workforce target	Actual staff in post
1996	n/a	569.6 (532.6)	n/a	n/a
1997	n/a	549.4 (495.8)	n/a	148.1
1998	n/a	529.4 (481.8)	n/a	147.7
1999	544 (484)	510.6 (465)	n/a	147.0
2000	554 (489)	542.9 (482.3)	129	138.7
2001	554 (489)	539.9 (485.8)	129	135.2

⁽¹⁶⁾ All figures are full-time equivalents.

⁽¹⁷⁾ The figures in brackets are the number of uniformed police officers. The total figure for each year includes plain-clothes police officers.

Community Beat Officers

Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community beat officers there are in the London Borough of Wandsworth. [152818]

Mr. Charles Clarke: I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that there are 31 constables in Wandsworth who are predominately engaged in community beat duties.

UK Youth Parliament

Mr. Rowe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to meet members of the UK Youth Parliament to discuss the proposals in the Parliament's manifesto in which his Department has a policy interest. [152967]

Mr. Boateng: I was pleased to attend the first sitting of the United Kingdom Youth Parliament last month. I will be making an initial response to the United Kingdom Youth Parliament's manifesto on behalf of the Government in my capacity as Minister for Young People. Both my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and I would be happy to meet a delegation from the United Kingdom Youth Parliament once the manifesto is published.

Bingo Industry

Mr. Fearn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce legislation to reduce the administrative burden on the bingo industry. [153765]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Government published a consultation document on 6 November 2000 with proposals for deregulating the bingo industry. The document suggested the abolition of the existing requirement for licensed bingo clubs to notify the licensing authority of changes in their charges to players 14 days in advance. It also suggested allowing licensed bingo clubs to have both jackpot and amusements with

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prizes gaming machines instead of either one or the other, and increasing the possible number of prizes available in games of multiple bingo.

The consultation period ended on 16 February 2001 and we have been considering the responses that we received. We now intend to lay an Order under the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 that would give effect to the changes outlined in the consultation document.

Deportation

Mr. Bennett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons Hosni Farhat (584006), a prisoner at Albany Prison, has not been deported. [153779]

Mrs. Roche: My officials will arrange for Mr. Farhat's deportation as soon as practicable.

Asylum Seekers

Mr. Corbett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average annual cost of escorting an asylum applicant in secure conditions to and from hearings in connection with his application and any subsequent appeal was in each of the last three years. [153830]

Mrs. Roche: The information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost and, as it would have to be based on a range of variables, it would be prone to significant inaccuracy.

Mr. Corbett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on talks with the Chinese Government on the difficulties of returning failed asylum seekers. [153833]

Mrs. Roche: Home Office officials have regular contact with the Chinese Government in order to obtain travel documents so that those Chinese nationals who have no lawful basis for remaining here and who are without valid national passports can be documented for return to China.

As part of this contact, officials meet the Chinese authorities to explore ways of securing improvements to the travel document issuing process and to co-operate more generally in combating illegal immigration.

Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers were resident in Wales and were waiting for their applications to be processed in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001. [153216]

Mrs. Roche: Information on the location of asylum seekers was not available centrally before 2000.

On 3 April 2000, the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) began supporting destitute asylum seekers entering the United Kingdom on or after that date. Information recorded by NASS shows that as at the end of February 2001, 30 ¹ asylum seekers, including dependants, had been allocated NASS accommodation in Wales and 70 ¹ asylum seekers, including dependants, had been allocated voucher only support and were located in Wales.

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These figures may include some asylum seeker families who have received a final negative decision because families of asylum seekers are eligible to remain supported by NASS until removal.

Information is not currently available centrally on the location of asylum seekers who either do not apply for NASS support or who were receiving Department of Social Security or local authority support before NASS began.

¹ Figures rounded to the nearest 10.

Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers are awaiting deportation; and how many were deported in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001. [153215]

Mrs. Roche: The requested information on deported asylum seekers is shown in the table. It is not possible to say how many asylum seekers voluntarily left the United Kingdom without the knowledge of the Home Office. Therefore, it is not possible to say how many are awaiting deportation.

Asylum seekers removed from the United Kingdom following refusal of leave to enter or enforcement action 1997 to 2001

	1997	1998	1999(18)	2000(18)
Total asylum removals and voluntary departures(19)	7,185	6,985	7,660	8,980
Of whom:
removed or left as a result of deportation action under Section 3(5) or 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1971	455	350	140	170

⁽¹⁸⁾ Data are provisional

⁽¹⁹⁾ Includes action against passengers applying at ports

Note:

All figures are rounded to the nearest 5

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