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5 Mar 2003 : Column 1088W—continued
Police Cells
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many arrests have taken place in (a) Chorley, (b) south Ribble and (c) west Lancashire in each of the last three years; to which custody suite were arrestees taken; and how many went to Magistrates court; [100383]
- (2) whether the extension to police cells at south Ribble will change the cells' status; [100384]
(3) how many custody suites are operated by Lancashire police; how many cells are in each; and where they are; [100382]
(4) how many police cells have been taken out of action in Lancashire in the last 12 months; [100385]
(5) what the timescale is for re-opening police cells that have been closed in Lancashire. [100388]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 3 March 2003]: I understand from the Chief Constable of Lancashire that there are nine custody suites operated by Lancashire Constabulary. These are located in Blackpool (30 cells), Lancaster (nine cells), Fleetwood (eight cells), Leyland (eight cells), Skelmersdale (17 cells), Preston (22 cells), Greenbank (36 cells), Burnley (16 cells) and Colne (eight cells).
Lancashire Constabulary intends to add about six cells to Leyland police station (South Ribble) within the next couple of years. It will retain its status as one of only two custody suites in Lancashire designed as suitable for the detention of terrorists and other Category A prisoners.
I will ask the Chief Constable of Lancashire to write to the hon. Member about the number of police cells taken out of action in Lancashire in the last 12 months.
The detailed information requested about arrests in Chorley, South Ribble and West Lancashire is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, I understand from
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Lancashire Constabulary that around 2,500 to 3,000 people per annum are arrested in each of these three areas.
Prison Inspectors
Mr. Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many inspectors of HM Prisons were employed in each year since 1997. [99761]
Hilary Benn: The number of inspectors employed by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons for each year since 1997 is set out in the table. The number of core inspectors in column one covers full-time equivalent posts employed by or seconded to the Inspectorate, and includes the Chief and Deputy Chief Inspectors. The number of specialist inspectors in column two includes staff employed on both a full and part-time basis. Guest inspectors employed by other inspectorates, for example OFSTED, or those consultants used on an ad hoc basis, are excluded.
| Core Inspectors | Specialist Inspectors | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 December 1997—30 November 1998 | 10 | 7 |
| 1 December 1998—30 November 1999 | 10 | 6 |
| 1 December 1999—30 November 2000 | 12 | 6 |
| 1 August 2001—31 August 2002 | 14 | 10 |
Prison Service Chief
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason the post of the Director General of HM Prison Service was not advertised. [99437]
Hilary Benn: The official appointed Director General of the Prison Service is an established civil servant of the same grade as the post. He also has all of the necessary competences for the job and, as the former Deputy Director General, is the most senior Prison Service operational manager and has the greatest experience. Given the circumstances outlined, the Civil Service Commission's rules permitted the post to be filled without advertisement.
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Prison Food
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of prisons offer fresh fruit each day to prisoners. [99720]
Hilary Benn: All prison establishments are required to offer fresh fruit to prisoners daily.
Drug Treatment
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders (a) in prison and (b) in the community were receiving treatment for drug problems in each of the last five years. [99537]
Hilary Benn: Information on the number of prisoners receiving treatment for drug problems was not collected centrally until 2001–02 and is given in the following table.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| Detoxification | 40,865 |
| Carats(27) | 39,279 |
| Rehabilitation | 4,691 |
(27) Counselling, assessment, referral, advice, throughcare
Powers to impose a drug and/or alcohol treatment requirement, as part of a Community Rehabilitation Order or a Community Punishment and Rehabilitation Order were contained in the Powers of Criminal Courts Act 1973, now the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000. However, these statistics do not differentiate between alcohol and drugs. From October 2000, when the Drug Treatment and Testing Order was rolled-out to courts in England and Wales, the power to attach a drug treatment requirement to a Community Rehabilitation Order or Community Rehabilitation and Punishment order was removed.
The table gives figures for Community Rehabilitation Orders and Community Punishment and Rehabilitation Orders that contain a drug and/or alcohol element for the years 1997 to 200l and the number of Drug Treatment and Testing Orders made between October 2000-December 2001.
| Number of persons | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type of additional requirement | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 |
| Community rehabilitation orders | |||||
| Residential drugs/alcohol treatment | 346 | 299 | 276 | 236 | 192 |
| Non-residential drugs/alcohol treatment | 1,039 | 1,394 | 1,590 | 1,795 | 1,133 |
| Drugs/alcohol treatment by/under qualified medical person | 631 | 843 | 1,131 | 1,101 | 793 |
| Total | 2,016 | 2,536 | 2,997 | 3,132 | 2,118 |
| Community punishment and rehabilitation orders | |||||
| Residential drugs/alcohol treatment | 4 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| Non-residential drugs/alcohol treatment | 165 | 238 | 238 | 175 | 143 |
| Drugs/alcohol treatment by/under qualified medical person | 92 | 105 | 110 | 1.31 | 71 |
| Total | 261 | 348 | 351 | 307 | 220 |
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional resources will be allocated for drug treatment and testing orders in each of the next two financial years. [99970]
Hilary Benn [holding answer 28 February 2003]: Additional funding of £17.7 million and £40 million respectively over the next two financial years has been allocated for drug treatment and testing orders.
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Rehabilitation
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on prison resources directed at the rehabilitation of 18 to 21 year-old young offenders. [99629]
Hilary Benn: I shall write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my reply in the Library.
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the early provisional indications of the Cognitive Self-Change Programme for Prisoners. [99724]
Hilary Benn: Preliminary psychometric data is showing reductions in hostility, aggression and impulsivity for the small number of prisoners who have completed the programme. More information will be available as prisoners progress through the programme and further analysis is undertaken.
Renewable Energy
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what changes in unit payments for electricity have resulted from the switch by his Department to purchasing renewable energy which is exempt from the Climate Change Levy. [96484]
Beverley Hughes: For the financial year 2001–2002 the average unit price of the renewable electricity (inclusive of VAT) purchased by the Home Department was 4.6610p/kWh and the average unit price of standard electricity was 4.5918p/kWh so there was an increase of 0.82 per cent in the average price paid. These figures are for the non-Agency Home Office, other than minor occupations where electricity consumption is minimal and figures are not collected centrally.
Special Constabulary
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the remuneration of special constables. [99551]
Mr. Denham: We have introduced the Special Constabulary (Amendment) Regulations 2002 to allow Police Authorities, following a recommendation of the Chief Officer, to make proposals to pay a locally funded allowance to special constables appointed for their area (or part of their area). Such schemes will require the approval of the Secretary of State.
The change in Regulations will enable a number of trial schemes to be run to help establish what effect such locally funded payments have on Specials' recruitment and retention and the number of hours they are able to offer their force.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the strength was of the special constabulary in each police authority area in (a) May 1997 and (b) May 2001; and what the strength is in each area. [99638]
Mr. Denham: Special constabulary numbers for this period are recorded centrally every six months in September and March. The latest figures available and the number of serving special constables in each police force area for March 1997 and 2001 are set out in the table.
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| Police force area | March 1997 | March 2001 | March 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avon and Somerset | 759 | 400 | 364 |
| Bedfordshire | 182 | 115 | 118 |
| Cambridgeshire | 303 | 218 | 207 |
| Cheshire | 475 | 290 | 191 |
| Cleveland | 160 | 93 | 85 |
| Cumbria | 189 | 156 | 102 |
| Derbyshire | 428 | 275 | 260 |
| Devon and Cornwall | 1,148 | 796 | 689 |
| Dorset | 289 | 267 | 253 |
| Durham | 184 | 146 | 134 |
| Essex | 634 | 445 | 381 |
| Gloucestershire | 297 | 183 | 154 |
| Greater Manchester | 685 | 367 | 338 |
| Hampshire | 621 | 454 | 444 |
| Hampshire | 621 | 454 | 444 |
| Hertfordshire | 297 | 198 | 206 |
| Humberside | 340 | 212 | 207 |
| Kent | 589 | 392 | 327 |
| Lancashire | 483 | 360 | 363 |
| Leicestershire | 415 | 162 | 143 |
| Lincolnshire | 271 | 166 | 155 |
| City of London | 86 | 43 | 36 |
| Merseyside | 401 | 541 | 468 |
| Metropolitan Police | 1,714 | 774 | 680 |
| Norfolk | 402 | 259 | 244 |
| Northamptonshire | 316 | 188 | 177 |
| Northumbria | 533 | 300 | 256 |
| North Yorkshire | 362 | 182 | 185 |
| Nottinghamshire | 620 | 335 | 341 |
| South Yorkshire | 308 | 188 | 206 |
| Staffordshire | 685 | 402 | 384 |
| Suffolk | 379 | 349 | 308 |
| Surrey | 297 | 149 | 187 |
| Sussex | 472 | 306 | 306 |
| Thames Valley | 656 | 418 | 356 |
| Warwickshire | 381 | 221 | 209 |
| West Mercia | 582 | 399 | 339 |
| West Midlands | 945 | 617 | 598 |
| West Yorkshire | 690 | 415 | 349 |
| Wiltshire | 154 | 152 | 147 |
| Dyfed-Powys | 283 | 191 | 157 |
| Gwent | 157 | 137 | 142 |
| North Wales | 341 | 207 | 125 |
| South Wales | 361 | 254 | 277 |
| Total all forces | 19,874 | 12,722 | 11,598 |
Since March 1998, information on the strength of special constabularies for each Police Force has been published in the Home Office Statistical Bulletins on police strength in England and Wales, copies of which are available in the Library.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will make a statement on the outcome of the Special Constabulary Weekend of 21–23 February. [99639]
Mr. Denham: The initial responses that we have received following the National Specials Weekend have been very positive, showing the impressive contribution that specials make to policing. Some of the activities of the Weekend will form the basis of an article to be published in March in 'Specialbeat' (an internal Special Constabulary magazine). An article on the Weekend's outcomes will also appear on the new website www.specialconstables.gov.uk which was launched at the same time as the Weekend. I am grateful to the hon. Member who replied to my invitation to support the Weekend.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make further funding available to chief constables to finance allowances under the Special Constables (Amendment) Regulations 2002
5 Mar 2003 : Column 1093W
to assist schemes aimed at the recruitment and retention of special constables; and if he will make a statement; [99645]
- (2) if he will investigate local schemes introduced under the Special Constables (Amendment) Regulations 2002 to assess the effect of payment on recruitment and retention of special constables; and if he will publish the findings of such an investigation; [99646]
(3) how many police authorities have applied to him for approval to introduce an allowance for special constables under the Special Constables (Amendment) Regulations 2002; how many he has (a) approved and (b) refused; and what measures he has taken to monitor schemes; [99647]
(4) what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer to exempt special constables from income tax being levied on allowances paid under the Special Constables (Amendment) Regulations 2002; and if he will make a statement. [99644]
Mr. Denham: We recognise that some forces feel it would be helpful to use local funding to pay specials involved in particular schemes and introduced The Special Constables (Amendment) Regulations 2002, which came into force on 10 January 2003. Under these new regulations, Police Authorities may, following a recommendation by the Chief Officer, make proposals to pay a locally funded allowance to special constables appointed for their area (or part of their area). Proposals must have the approval of the Secretary of State.
It is for the Police Authority to propose the size and terms and conditions of an allowance appropriate to their area or scheme. It will be open to police authorities to obtain sponsorship to help fund the schemes or to fund them entirely from their existing resources. We expect that, when they are developing proposals, police authorities will take advice from the Inland Revenue on the likely implications of paying an allowance.
Several police authorities have expressed an interest in developing allowance schemes but we have yet to receive any formal proposals. We will be looking for a number of innovative trial schemes which will enable an evidence-based assessment to be made of the effect of local payment schemes on recruitment and retention and the number of hours offered by specials, and whether such schemes offer value for money.
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