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1 Apr 2003 : Column 665W—continued
Sports Facilities
Mr. Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action she is taking to increase the number of people (a) trained and (b) employed to coach under 18s participating in sport outside school. [105596]
Mr. Caborn: Further to the answer which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State gave on 24 July 2002, Official Report, columns 1162–63W, this Department has been planning implementation of the key recommendations of the Coaching Task Force with delivery agencies, national governing bodies, county sports partnerships and other stakeholders. In the coming year, I expect the first phase of Community Sports Coaches to be operational, the majority of Coach Development Officers to be appointed, significant
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development of the National Coaching Certificate to be completed and support funding for national governing bodies to be in place.
Tote
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she expects to introduce a bill to change the status of the Tote; and if she will make a statement. [106141]
Mr. Caborn: We plan to bring forward proposals for pre-legislative scrutiny and then a Bill as soon as parliamentary time allows.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Criminal Records Bureau
Mr. Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the costs were of producing the video sent to all registered bodies detailing the application procedures of security vetting procedures for school staff. [104414]
Hilary Benn: The total cost of producing the video entitled "Completing Disclosure application forms" that was sent to all registered bodies detailing the application procedures and security vetting procedures was £34,684.74 excluding VAT. It is not aimed exclusively at those wishing to vet school staff, but at the whole range of organisations and business sectors that wish to use the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Disclosure service. The video aims to guide viewers through the application process and how to ensure that applications are handled as efficiently as possible.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many people applying for employment in schools are awaiting clearance from the Criminal Records Bureau in (a) the Bury St. Edmunds constituency, (b) Suffolk, (c) Norfolk, (d) Cambridgeshire and (e) England; [104853]
- (2) how many people applying for employment in residential care and nursing homes are awaiting clearance from the Criminal Records Bureau in (a) Bury St. Edmunds, (b) Suffolk, (c) Norfolk and (d) England. [104820]
Hilary Benn: Data on outstanding applications for specific job types in the areas requested is not available because there are no IT procedures at present to extract this data from the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) database. This functionality is expected to be available during subsequent system releases.
The estimated average turnaround of checks processed by the CRB remains at approximately five weeks. This is measured from the point at which a correctly completed form is received by the CRB, accompanied by all relevant supporting details.
CCTV
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to increase the funding available for CCTV schemes in the Buckingham constituency. [106371]
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Mr. Bob Ainsworth: We are providing £94 million in 2003–04 for local crime reduction activities and action against drugs, including CCTV schemes. Aylesbury Vale Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership has been allocated a total of £176,346.
In addition, we are making available to local police commanders in 2003–04 a special £50 million Basic Command Unit (BCU) fund for them to use in tackling the problems that matter most in their communities. Police commanders will be able to target the extra resources at local level problems, like anti-social behaviour and drugs, deploying CCTV where appropriate. Aylesbury Vale BCU will receive £110,782 from this source.
Community Service
Mr. Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he gives on the types of activity which are appropriate for a person sentenced to community service. [106586]
Hilary Benn: Individual probation areas have discretion over the type of unpaid work that is assigned to offenders sentenced to community punishment (the new name for what was community service). Home Office National Standards for the Supervision of Offenders in the Community require probation areas to ensure that unpaid work is physically, emotionally or mentally demanding, so that it constitutes an effective deterrent to offending behaviour and a credible alternative to custody. Further guidance specifies that activities should take into account the needs of individuals, such as those related to gender, ethnicity or ability, meet health and safety requirements and must not replace work that would normally be carried out by paid employees. Typical unpaid work includes canal clearance, removal of graffiti and the decoration of community centres.
Crime (Humberside)
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the population of each prison in Haltemprice and Howden was in each year since 1997. [105203]
Hilary Benn: The population of Everthorpe and The Wolds is given in the table.
| The Wolds | Everthorpe | |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 (30 June) | 399 | 463 |
| 1998 (30 June) | 398 | 468 |
| 1999 (30 June) | 394 | 463 |
| 2000 (30 June) | 401 | 458 |
| 2001 (30 June) | 397 | 465 |
| 2002 (30 June) | 409 | 374 |
| 2003 (26 March) | 348 | 373 |
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many juvenile offenders have breached (a) probation conditions and (b) curfew orders in the East Riding of Yorkshire in each year since 1997. [105231]
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Hilary Benn: The Probation Order became the Community Rehabilitation Order in April 2001. Breaches dealt with by courts in the East Riding of Yorkshire, and the relevant Crown court, were as follows:
| CommunityRehabilitation Orders | Curfew Orders | |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998 | 0 | 0 |
| 1999 | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | 1 | 0 |
| 2001 | 1 | 0 |
Domestic Violence
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidelines he issues to local authorities regarding (a) the content and (b) the frequency of review of domestic violence policy at local authority level. [106254]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: I have not issued guidelines to local authorities on domestic violence policy at local authority level. I have, however, announced that £14 million will be made available over the next three years to assist with the development of local responses to domestic violence, and that the Home Office will be working with the Local Government Authority (LGA) to fund a post to support this work.
Prison Statistics
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many female prisoners under the age of 18 were detained in Holloway prison (a) six months ago, (b) one year ago and (c) five years ago; and how many are held there now. [105406]
Hilary Benn: The information requested is given in the table.
| Month/year | Number |
|---|---|
| June 1998 | 5 |
| January 2002 | 13 |
| July 2002 | 11 |
| January 2003 | 10 |
Mrs. Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) pursuant to his answer of 17 March, Official Report, column 586W, on the Inmate Information System (IIS), what percentage of inmates serving sentences have had their records linked to the IIS; what measures are being taken to address the limitations of the system; and what timetable he has set for rectifying these limitations; [105358]
- (2) pursuant to his answer of 17 March, Official Report, column 586W, on the Inmate Information System (IIS), which computer systems are being considered as replacements for the IIS; and what the costs are of the systems being considered. [105359]
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Hilary Benn: All prisons and prisoner records are linked to the Inmate Information System (IIS), although any linking of current records to previous custody information is done manually, as I outlined in my answer of 17 March 2003, Official Report, column 586W, to the hon. Member. It is not possible to provide a percentage of the records that are linked in this way, as no central record is maintained of this information.
However, prisons do routinely receive details of previous convictions from the court or police authorities and everything possible is done to link current records with previous custody information.
The current IIS system is being reviewed and the linking of information, both on previous periods in custody and more widely with other Criminal Justice agencies, will be a major consideration of that review. This work is at its initial stages and it is not yet possible to give any firm details of likely timescales, costs or computer systems involved in the implementation.
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were being held in police cells at police stations within the Greater London area on 20 March. [105270]
Hilary Benn: On 20 March 2003, there were no Prison Service prisoners being held in police cells at police stations in the Greater London area under Operation Safeguard.
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 6 March 2003, Official Report, column 1243W, on prisons, what measures the Government is taking to ensure the current planned uncrowded capacity for prisons in England and Wales in 2004 is closer to his Department's forecast average prison population for the same year. [105237]
Hilary Benn: The Government has provided resources for the Prison Service to increase uncrowded capacity from 66,000 places in 2003 to 67,000 places in 2004. It is recognised that uncrowded population in 2004. However, capacity planning assumes that the Prison Service not only uses accommodation efficiently but that some accommodation can be overcrowded where appropriate services and regime facilities are provided. Care is taken by the Prison Service to assess the risks to safety, security and control which increase as population pressures rise. The risks are monitored and all possible steps, including limiting the number of prisoners held in any prison, are taken to mitigate their impact.
The Prison service continues to investigate options for providing further increases in capacity over the coming years, as part of the Government's prison modernisation strategy. This is based on a combination of expanding capacity in existing prisons that we want to keep in the long term, and a programme to build new large multifunction prisons.
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