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Immigration and Nationality Department
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average response time is of Her Majesty's Immigration and Nationality Departments in Croydon to messages left through the hotline telephone service by hon. Members and their staff. [35793]
Angela Eagle: Statistics are not maintained, but the aim of the unit is to respond substantively to callers within seven days.
The hotline is reliant upon a wide range of Government offices and agencies, including British diplomatic posts abroad, for information and documents. Where there is likely to be delay, the hotline will endeavour to contact the caller to let them know of this and when a full response is likely to be available.
Next month will see the introduction of a new and much improved telephone system, which will allow the hotline to hold calls in a queue and provide callers with information while they wait for the call to be taken. The
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system will also enable calls to be voice recorded and will provide reports on performance which can be used as a means of on-going assessment and determining staff numbers.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the hotline telephone service available to hon. Members from Her Majesty's Immigration and Nationality Department in Croydon. [35794]
Angela Eagle: The performance and working methods of the hotline are kept under regular review. Last autumn, the number of operators was increased from eight to 10 and their central function was more sharply defined as responding to calls promptly and offering general immigration advice.
Next month will see the introduction of a new and much improved telephone system, which will allow the Hotline to hold calls in a queue and provide callers with information while they wait for the call to be taken. The system will also enable calls to be voice recorded and will provide reports on performance which can be used as a means of ongoing assessment and determining staff numbers.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what checks are made on the response times of Her Majesty's Immigration and Nationality Department in Croydon to (a) messages and (b) queries made through their hotline telephone service by hon. Members and their staff. [35795]
Angela Eagle: There is currently no system for leaving voice messages for members of the hotline. The unit's fax machine is switched on permanently and faxed messages are allocated to operators upon receipt during normal working hours.
All telephone calls and faxes to the hotline are logged on an electronic file and all hotline operators have access to that file. The information logged will include a date, agreed with the caller, for the operator to ring back with a substantive response or an interim progress report.
The manager of the unit checks the electronic file at least once a week and any outstanding matters are identified and addressed without avoidable delay.
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Next month will see the introduction of a new and much improved telephone system, which will allow the hotline to hold calls in a queue and provide callers with information while they wait for the call to be taken. The system will also enable calls to be voice recorded and will provide reports on performance which can be used as a means of ongoing assessment and determining staff numbers.
Drivers (Violent Acts)
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reported cases involving violent acts by drivers there were in England and Wales in each of the last three years; how many of those convicted in the courts of such offences were (a) men and (b) women; how many were (i) sent to prison and (ii) fined; and if he will make a statement. [36290]
Mr. Keith Bradley: The information requested is not available. "Road rage" is not an offence covered by specific legislation and motorists involved in consequential criminal behaviour are likely to be charged with an offence appropriate to the circumstances (such as criminal damage, common assault or dangerous driving). The details of the circumstances of offences are not collected centrally.
People Trafficking
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been (a) charged and (b) convicted in courts in England and Wales with the smuggling of (i) adults and (ii) children under the age of 18 years into this country in each of the last three years; and how many of those convicted were (A) sent to prison and (B) fined. [36292]
Mr. Keith Bradley: The available information, from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database, relating to England and Wales for the years 1998 to 2000 is shown in the table. These data cover proceedings under the Immigration Act 1971 Sec.25(1) (a) and (b) as amended by the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 Sec.5. No other offences connected with people smuggling can be separately identified in the statistics collected centrally, nor can the figures given be broken down according to the age of the people being smuggled.
Statistics for 2001 are not yet available.
My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has already indicated his intention to increase the maximum penalty for these offences to 14 years, and a range of further measures are under consideration.
| Proceeded against | Found guilty | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offence description | Statute | 1998 | 1999 | 2000(23) | 1998 | 1999 | 2000(23) |
| Knowingly concerned in making or carrying out arrangements for securing or facilitating the entry into the UK of anyone whom he knows or has reasonable cause for believing to be an illegal entrant | Immigration Act 1974 Sec.25(1)(a) as amended by Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 Sec.5 | 193 | 233 | 199 | 115 | 150 | 145 |
| Knowingly concerned in making or carrying out arrangements for securing or facilitating the entry into the UK of anyone whom he knows or has reasonable cause for believing to be an asylum claimant | Immigration Act 1974 Sec.25(1)(b) as added by Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 Sec.5 | 4 | 20 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 3 |
| Total | 197 | 253 | 210 | 118 | 156 | 148 | |
(22) Figures provided are on the principal immigration offence basis
(23) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data these data are not robust at a detailed level and have been excluded from this table.
(24) The numbers sentenced to custody may exceed those found guilty as they may include those committed for sentence from the magistrates courts in the previous year.
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Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women have been trafficked into the UK from other European countries in each of the last three years. [37199]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Forming an accurate estimate of the levels of trafficking in people is problematic due to the hidden nature of the act. There are currently no accurate, reliable data in existence within the United Kingdom or the European Union. A Home Office research study "Stopping Traffic" (Police Research Series 125) published in 2000 indicated that although there was intelligence to suggest that some women and children are trafficked into the United Kingdom for the purposes of sexual exploitation, it was impossible to make an accurate assessment of numbers, but that it was likely to be in the range of 140 to 1,400 per annum.
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action his Department has taken with other European countries to stop the trafficking of women from those countries into the UK. [37198]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Effective action against an organised crime, which does not respect borders, requires close co-operation with other countries, particularly with our European Union (EU) partners. The European Council at Tampere set out an agenda for tackling illegal immigration, especially human trafficking. We welcome the progress already made there, including the directive on smuggling and two framework decisions on smuggling and trafficking. We intend to legislate to give effect to the EU directive and framework decision on the facilitation of unauthorised entry, movement and residence when a suitable opportunity arises.
All EU member states have established a formal network of Immigration Liaison Officers (ILOs) following guidelines adopted at the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 29 May 2001. They work alongside other United Kingdom (UK) liaison officers as part of the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) overseas network. UK-based law enforcement agencies work closely with Europol and ILOs.
The UK is contributing to the EU STOP programme, which was set up by a joint action of the European Council in 1996 to support member state organisations responsible for action against the trade in human beings
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and the sexual exploitation of children. A European Council decision of 28 June 2001 established a second phase of this programme (STOP II). Of the projects submitted in the year 2001 funding round, 15 had UK involvement. Of these, 12 organisations were successful and the UK takes the lead with five projects through NCIS and other agencies and organisations.
The UK is also working with EU "Candidate Countries" on twinning projects to assist them in combating organised crime, including organised immigration crime. In close co-operation with the member states and the applicant countries, the Belgian Presidency organised a High Impact Operation at the future eastern borders of the EU in September-October 2001. The UK and Ireland were paired with the Czech Republic. This co-operation also comprised technical assistance, exchange of expertise and the development of intelligence.
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what facilities exist to help women who have been trafficked into the UK to return to their homes; and if he will make a statement. [37200]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: As announced in the White Paper "Secure Borders, Safe Haven", we are currently preparing a pilot programme to support victims of exploitation escape their circumstances. Working with the voluntary sector, we will assist people to return home, and ensure that they have the support necessary to ensure that their return is safe and dignified. We envisage that the programme under development will provide initial counselling, and suitable accommodation for victims to return to, which will help them reintegrate into the community and find employment.
We intend to develop a best practice 'toolkit' to help those who deal with illegal immigrants and trafficking victims to distinguish victims in genuine need and to deal with them appropriately. This toolkit will be important for practitioners, chiefly police and immigration officers, who will use it to identify victims and ensure that the right procedures are followed to provide victims with the support and help they need. It will be a comprehensive summary of best practice based on 'what works'.
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