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5 Mar 2003 : Column 1080W—continued
London Prisons
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been allocated to each London prison under the prison service drug strategy during the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [99408]
Hilary Benn: The Prison Service is committed to meeting the needs of all drug-misusing prisoners—to help them lead law-abiding lives on release and, thereby, reduce levels of re-offending. The following table shows the allocations made to each London prison at the start of the 2002–03 financial year.
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| Prison | Total (£000s) |
|---|---|
| Belmarsh | 609.3 |
| Brixton | 632.9 |
| Feltham | 733.7 |
| Holloway | 301.8 |
| Latchmere House | 163.1 |
| Pentonville | 504.5 |
| Wandsworth | 930.3 |
| Wormwood Scrubs | 660.7 |
| Total | 4,536.3 |
Merseyside Neighbourhood Support Scheme
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what assessment he has made of the work of the Neighbourhood Support Team of the Special Constabulary of Merseyside; [99550]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the work of the Special Constabulary on Merseyside. [99549]
Mr. Denham: Merseyside Special Constabulary plays an important role in contributing towards crime reduction and public reassurance within their force. They are recognised by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) as being a well managed force, who have put considerable efforts into integrating specials work into that of the regular force and within their neighbourhood policing model.
The Chief Constable of Merseyside Police also tells me that since its inception in July 2002, the Neighbourhood Support Team of the Special Constabulary has made 84 arrests, itself an impressive record.
Merseyside Police was one of several forces across the country asked to take forward a project under the 'Specials Champions Initiative', contributing towards Home Office/ACPO Good Practice Guidance which will be published on the new Special Constabulary website (www.specialconstables.gov.uk)
Parole
Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many prisoners who (a) maintain their innocence and (b) admit guilt for the offence for which they have been convicted have been granted parole or life licence in each of the last five years; [100170]
- (2) how many prisoners who maintain their innocence have completed offending behaviour programmes in each of the last five years. [100169]
Hilary Benn: Offending behaviour programmes vary in their suitability for prisoners who maintain their innocence in relation to their current offence. Information on such prisoners who complete offending
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behaviour programmes is not centrally recorded by the Prison Service and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Information on how many prisoners who (a) maintain their innocence and (b) admit guilt for the offence of which they have been convicted and have been granted parole or life licence in each of the last five years is not centrally recorded by the Prison Service and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. I understand however, that as from January 2003, the Parole Board has begun to collate this data and the results are likely to be published in its future Annual Reports.
Police
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) uniformed officers and (b) civilian staff there were in each police authority area in the North East region (i) in 1996 and (ii) on the most recent date for which figures are available; and if he will express this figure as a ratio per head of population. [100566]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 4 March 2003]: The information requested is set out in the table.
| Force | Police officer numbers | Police officers per 100,000 population | Civilians | Civilians per 100,000 population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 March 1996(23) | ||||
| Durham | 1,401 | 230.4 | 526.5 | 86.6 |
| Cleveland | 1,420.3 | 253.6 | 553.3 | 98.8 |
| Northumbria | 3,668.3 | 254.4 | 1,399.3 | 97.0 |
| North east region | 6,489.6 | 248.6 | 2,479 | 95.0 |
| 31 March 2002(24) | ||||
| Durham | 1,614 | 266.0 | 660 | 108.8 |
| Cleveland | 1,461 | 262.5 | 626 | 112.4 |
| Northumbria | 3,929 | 277.8 | 1,403 | 99.2 |
| North east region | 7,004 | 271.8 | 2,689 | 104.3 |
(23) Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, Annual Report 1995–96
(24) Home Office Research and Statistics Directorate
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many net transfers there were in each police force in (a) 1998–99, (b) 1999–2000, (c) 2000–01 and (d) 2001–02; [100739]
- (2) what estimate he has made of the number of (a) transfers in, (b) transfers out and (c) net transfers for (i) 2002–03 to date and (ii) the full year 2002–03 for each police force. [100740]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 4 March 2003]: The information in the table has been provided by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary. Statistics for 2002–03 are not yet available but will be collected by the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate after 31March 2003 and published in due course.
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5 Mar 2003 : Column 1085W
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many police officers transferred from Essex Police to (a) the Metropolitan Police and (b) the City of London Police in the last 12 months for which figures are available; [99640]
- (2) how many police officers have transferred to the Essex Police from (a) the Metropolitan Police and (b) the City of London Police in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [99641]
Mr. Denham: Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary collects information annually about the total number of officers transferring in and out of each force. The information collected does not distinguish the force of origin or destination of officers who have transferred. The latest information is for 2001–02 and the table shows the total numbers of officers transferring in and out of the Essex, City of London and Metropolitan police forces.
| Force | Transfers out | Transfers in |
|---|---|---|
| City of London | 11 | 42 |
| Essex | 56 | 50 |
| Metropolitan | 436 | 196 |
Essex Police, in common with a number of other forces in and around London, is concerned about issues relating to the retention of police officers, including a net outflow of officers on transfer.
We are therefore working with Chief Constables, Police Authorities and staff associations in and around London, including Essex, to look at all the associated issues and to develop practical solutions.
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the basic command unit fund is exempt from the requirement to save 5 per cent. overtime costs set out in the Police Reform Act 2002. [99667]
Mr. Denham: The Basic Command Unit (BCD) Fund, allocated £50 million in each of the three years from 2003–04, is provided to help the frontline deliver crime and disorder reduction locally and promote partnership working. The funding may be spent on a
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range of crime and disorder work and on building the capacity of Partnerships to deliver, as part of a coherent local strategy.
Where the BCU fund is used for police operations, it may be necessary for officers to be deployed outside their normal duty hours. Where that is necessary, it will need to be planned in accordance with the Agreement reached in the Police Negotiating Board (PNB) on managing overtime. That Agreement is about giving police officers a better work/life balance. It is not about cutting costs or reducing the availability of officers for operational duties, including, when the need arises, beyond their rostered hours.
Under the PNB Agreement, forces will have local targets for reducing their overtime bill, agreed between the chief constable and the police authority, with the approval of the Inspectorate. In monitoring forces' performance against their targets, the Inspectorate is expressly required, under the PNB Agreement, to take account of force strength, unforeseen major incidents and new requirements. So, the Inspectorate will ensure that any new spending on overtime to deliver reductions in crime—such as from the BCD fund—is taken into account when assessing forces' performance against their overtime targets.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were per notifiable offence in England in each year from 1977–78 to 2002–03 (estimated); and if he will make a statement. [99812]
Mr. Denham: The requested information is shown in the table.
(25) Recorded crime data expressed on a financial year basis from this point onwards
(26) Revised rules for recording crime were introduced on 1 April 1998. The ratios before and after this date are therefore not directly comparable.
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Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the resident population of each English police authority was in the latest year for which figures are available. [99881]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 27 February 2003]: The latest available total resident population, as at 30 June 2001, as estimated by the Registrar General, is given in the table.
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Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of telephone call-handling facilities for the public at each English police authority in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [99904]
Mr. Denham: Information on the costs of telephone services to police authorities in England are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Police forces in England have developed telephone call-handling facilities to deal with calls from the public. Again, information relating to the costs of providing such facilities are not held centrally and could not be collected except at disproportionate cost.
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