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Extradition Applications (France)

Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications have been received from France for extradition of persons to face terrorist charges, in each of the last 5 years; when

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each application was received; what progress has been made; what the reasons are for delay in process; and if he will make a statement. [85718]

Mr. Bob Ainsworth [holding answer 9 December 2002]: In the past five years, France has made requests for the extradition of three persons accused of charges relating to terrorist activity.

One request made in March 1996 led to the fugitive's surrender to France in March 1998.

In another, a request made in April 2001 has just completed its judicial stages. The fugitive now has a statutory opportunity to make representations to my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary as to why his surrender should not take place. Those representations are awaited.

In the remaining case, there are two outstanding requests. The first covers three separate requisitions made in November and December 1995 and in February 1996. Following lengthy proceedings, a decision in October 2001 to order surrender was quashed in June 2002 by the courts. We are awaiting a response from French authorities on matters raised by the judgment in order that the case may be reviewed. A further request for extradition, involving additional charges, was made in the same case in October 2001. That matter is still before the courts.

A Bill to streamline and modernise current extradition procedures is now before parliament.

Immigration Officers (Waterloo Station)

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether immigration officers based at Waterloo station will be permitted to continue to work at Waterloo in the event that they decline to work in France or Belgium. [86860]

Officers of all grades will continue to be deployed at Waterloo International while there is a continuing business and operational need.

There will be opportunities for staff who are not willing to work overseas in France or Belgium to transfer to other locations.

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the working month of immigration officers based at Waterloo station who undertake work in France and Belgium will be spent at either venue; and what extra allowances or salaries will be paid. [86861]

Beverley Hughes: Officers of all grades undertake juxtaposed immigration control duties on a voluntary basis. On average officers currently perform one such duty per week. In early 2003 local management at Waterloo will commence trials which will test a four night and a nine night package in France. These trials will last six months. We are unable to comment on the frequency that staff will be expected to carry out these duties until the results of these trials have been evaluated.

In addition to their salary, staff receive overtime payments for excess hours worked and a locally agreed subsistence allowance to cover additional out of pocket expenditure. The Department meets hotel costs.

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Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if immigration officers based at Waterloo station will be obliged to agree to undertake work in (a) France and (b) Belgium. [86862]

Beverley Hughes: Officers of all grades based at Waterloo undertake juxtaposed immigration control duties in France and Belgium on a voluntary basis. At present officers stay one night overseas.

In early 2003, local management at Waterloo will trial a range of options to determine a more efficient means of staffing juxtaposed controls in France and Belgium. A trawl seeking volunteers to take part in these trials will be published early in the new year. We will evaluate the trial after six months and do not rule out compelling staff to work in France and Belgium should there be insufficient volunteers.

Iraqi Asylum Seekers

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Iraqi asylum seekers he estimates had their applications refused during the 1997 to 2001 Parliament. [86908]

Beverley Hughes: There were 12,550 initial decisions on Iraqi asylum applications during the period 1 May 1997 and 31 May 2001. Of these 6,175 were refused. There are no reliable data available in this period for the number of Iraqis who subsequently appealed, and the decisions of those appeals.

Information on asylum applications and initial decisions is published quarterly. The next publication will cover the period October to December 2002, and will be available from 28 February 2003 on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1 .html.

Wormwood Scrubs (Max Glatt Unit)

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Max Glatt Unit at Wormwood Scrubs prison in increasing health standards. [87442]

Hilary Benn: There has been no research into the effectiveness of the Matt Glatt Unit in increasing health standards.

Passports (Children in Care)

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passports were issued to children in (a) the care of UK local authorities and (b) long-term foster care during each of the last five years. [87123]

Beverley Hughes: This information is not held by the United Kingdom Passport Service.

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he plans to review procedures for issuing passports to children in long-term foster care with birth parents who are not contactable. [87125]

Beverley Hughes: No. The UK Passport Service requirements that parental consent is given before a passport is issued to a child and that evidence of an

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appropriate court order be produced before accepting consent form a local authority social services department, are based on sound principles and are correct in law. It would be wrong for the UK Passport Service to attempt to decide whether or to whom parental rights have transferred in these circumstances; these are matters for the courts. The UK Passport Service is drawing up a guidance note for social services departments to clarify requirements for passport applications.

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on procedures used to issue passports to children in long-term foster care; and what assessment has been made of the extent of delays in the process. [87218]

Beverley Hughes: British passports are issued to children only when parental consent is given. If an application for a child's passport is made by anyone other than the child's parents, the United Kingdom Passport Service (UKPS) must establish either that the applicant has parental rights or that a person with parental rights has given consent. In most cases where a child is in foster care parental rights are not transferred to the foster parent. The UKPS therefore advises the local authority to make the application in such circumstances and give details of the care order or other court order which deals with the issue of parental rights. Applications in which this information is provided are not delayed.

Prison Population

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment his Department has made of the need to revise (a) short-term and (b) long-term predictions of growth in the prison population in light of the Criminal Justice Bill; upon what information such an assessment was made; what action his Department intends to take to meet changes in the growth of the prison population; and if he will make a statement. [84248]

Hilary Benn: We have not made final decisions about implementation of the measures in the Criminal Justice Bill, but on the basis of the modelling which has been undertaken to estimate the impact of the sentencing reforms and the cost of the Bill, we do not expect them to generate significant increases in the prison population. On current assumptions, the impact on the prison population of implementing the sentencing reforms would be broadly flat with a small reduction in places in late 2004 and early 2005, followed by a modest increase of up to 1,000 places between mid-2006 and early 2009, levelling out once the reforms have bedded in.

The Review of Correctional Services is addressing a wide range of questions regarding effectiveness and value for money and is developing a strategy for managing prison population pressures and containing its future growth. The impact of proposals in the Criminal Justice Bill are being considered in the context of the review. The prison population projections will be revised when firm implementation dates for new policy initiatives have been set. The prison service will then be in a position to work up plans for delivering the capacity needed to meet the revised projections.

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Prison Visits

Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has concluded his review of the guidance PSO 440, relating to visits by close relatives to prisoners; and if he will make a statement. [86859]

Hilary Benn: It is assumed that the hon. member is referring to Prison Service Order (PSO) 4400 and not 440 as set out in the question. The Prison Service is reviewing its child protection measures as set out in PSO 4400 as part of an overall long-term review of the management of dangerous offenders. A new Prison Service Instruction on public protection is likely to be complete in late summer 2003. There are no plans to abandon the policy disallowing visits to child sex offenders by children other than close relatives.

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