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Parliamentary Questions
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many answers to parliamentary questions have not been answered by his Department under exemption 13 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information in each year since 1994. [29423]
Mr. Blunkett [holding answer 22 January 2002]: The number of parliamentary questions not answered by my Department under exemption 13 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information in each year since 1994 are as follows:
| Year | PQs not answered |
|---|---|
| 1994–96 | Nil |
| 1997 | 4 |
| 1998 | 6 |
| 1999 | 6 |
| 2000 | 9 |
| 2001 | 9 |
| Total | 34 |
Victims of Crime
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what (a) guidance and (b) targets he has given to police authorities on the time within which police officers should visit victims of (i) burglary, (ii) robbery, (iii) sex crimes and (iv) other crimes of violence. [34773]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 8 February 2002]: Under the 1996 Victim's Charter the police have responsibility for ensuring that victims are put in contact with the voluntary organisation Victim Support. Once a crime has been reported, the Victim's Charter outlines the standards of service that victims can expect to receive from the criminal justice agencies. The police are responsible for keeping victims informed of subsequent developments in the case, and the outcome of any court proceedings. Guidance about this was issued in Home Office Circular 55/1998.
The police are also required to conduct user satisfaction surveys on a range of service responses, including the quality of response to a report of a burglary or of a violent crime.
Crime Statistics
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of crime, broken down by main categories for reporting, is known to have been committed by persons of (a) European, (b) African, (c) South Asian and (d) other ethnic origin in the last five years. [34675]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 8 February 2002]: Information available centrally relates to the number of persons arrested by the police for notifiable offences. This information is published annually by the Home Office in 'Statistics on Race and the Criminal Justice System'. Information for 2000–01 will be published shortly.
11 Feb 2002 : Column 48W
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of those convicted of criminal offences, broken down by 10-year age bands, are of (a) European, (b) African, (c) south Asian and (d) other ethnic origins; and what proportion each group represents of each age band in the last five years. [34676]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 8 February 2002]: Currently information is only collected centrally by the Home Office on persons convicted at magistrates courts in six police force areas. This information is published annually by the Home Office in "Statistics on Race and the Criminal Justice System".
Antisocial Behaviour Orders
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Antisocial Behaviour Orders have been (a) sought and (b) granted in (i) each police authority area and (ii) each social services authority area where not coterminous with a police authority area. [34776]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 8 February 2002]: Antisocial Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) are community- based civil orders, which can be applied for by the police or local authority, in consultation with each other against an individual or several individuals whose behaviour is antisocial. Applications are to the magistrates court acting in its civil capacity.
From 1 April 1999 to 31 May 2000 data on the number of ASBOs issued were collected by police force area. No information on applications refused is available for this period.
From 1 June 2000 official statistics on the number of ASBOs issued are based on quarterly returns from magistrates courts committees (MCCs) which from 1 April 2001 were all aligned with police force areas. These returns are not presently designed to give figures below MCC level. A review of these statistics identified an undercount and the Home Department therefore undertook an exercise with the police to obtain more reliable figures. As a result of this reconciliation exercise the total number of ASBOs issued within England and Wales up to the end of September 2001 was 466, 184 more than previously reported. The information available by police force area/magistrates courts committees is given in the table.
(8) Data collected on refused applications as from 1 June 2000 only
(9) Including City of London
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Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will extend the power to apply for antisocial behaviour orders to (a) parish and town councils, (b) governing bodies of schools and (c) other persons affected by antisocial behaviour. [34775]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 8 February 2002]: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary recently announced important proposals to increase the effectiveness of antisocial behaviour orders, (ASBOs) which include extending the power to apply for ASBOs to the British Transport police and registered social landlords. We would very much encourage parish and town councils governing bodies of schools, and indeed all other bodies representing the community to work for the reduction of antisocial behaviour, but we believe that where an application for an ASBO may be appropriate they should continue to work through the police and/or the local authority.
Metropolitan Police
John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answers of 18 December 2001, Official Report, column 232W and 28 June 2001, Official Report, column 120W, on police numbers, what proportion of the change in the number of police officers in the Metropolitan police area is attributable to the transfer of responsibility of policing some areas to the surrounding forces of Surrey, Hertfordshire and Essex in April 2000. [29506]
Mr. Denham: The effects of the Metropolitan police boundary changes on 1 April 2000 were incorporated into the police funding formula and the overall transfer between the forces was in terms of financial resources, not of officers. Where data on police numbers are used in the formula, a notional transfer of 887 from the
11 Feb 2002 : Column 50W
Metropolitan police to the three county forces was applied. Because it is for police authorities and Chief Constables to decide how resources are utilised, it is not appropriate to convert the notional transfer directly into a full-time equivalent strength for the Metropolitan police as a consequence of the changes.
Between 31 March 2000 and 31 March 2001 the strength of the Metropolitan police fell by 607, to 24,878. This will have been due to a combination of boundary change resources and the temporary secondments to Essex, Hertfordshire and Surrey. By 30 September 2001, the numbers of officers in the Metropolitan police had increased to 25,374—496 more than on 31 March 2000.
Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officers in the Metropolitan Police Service have left the service in each of the last four years as a result of (a) reaching retirement age, (b) being retired sick, (c) being transferred to another force and (d) resignation. [26881]
Mr. Denham: The information set out in the table has been provided by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
| Year | Normal retirement | Medical retirement | Transfer to another force | Resignation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 594 | 405 | 265 | 247 | 1,511 |
| 1998–99 | 592 | 494 | 229 | 332 | 1,647 |
| 1999–2000 | 554 | 285 | 243 | 361 | 1,443 |
| 2000–01 | 465 | 220 | 382 | 359 | 1,426 |
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