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National Insurance

Mr. Burnett: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment the Lord Chancellor's Department has made of the effect of the increase in national insurance contributions from April 2003 upon bidding for Community Legal Services contracts. [109395R]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The resources presently available to my Department and the Legal Services Commission do not allow for any compensatory increases in relation to the new national insurance (NI) contributions. The additional NI contribution will need to be absorbed by publicly funded suppliers within their existing contractual resources.

Part-time Workers

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment she has made of the impact of the Part-Time Workers Directive on staff in the Department. [109271]

Ms Rosie Winterton: Following the implementation of the Part-Time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations (2000) the my Department introduced flexible working policies which enhanced part-time work options.

Job-sharing and job-splitting opportunities, access to a job-share register; and a wide range of reduced-hours arrangements form part of a comprehensive package of

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flexible work options available to all staff. My Department actively supports part-time staff through a Work-Life Balance Champion; a website; and a Carers Handbook. Staff working flexibly can express their views directly to senior management by way of a network for carers and at corporate diversity events.

19.4 per cent. of staff in my Department currently work part-time (86.7 per cent. of whom are women, the majority caring for dependants) compared with 16.0 per cent. in 2001. Figures are published annually. Work-life balance responses have shown the greatest year on year improvement in Staff Attitude Surveys in the last two years.

Property Portfolio

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the estimated value is of the property portfolio held by the Lord Chancellor's Department. [108371]

Yvette Cooper: On 1 April 2003, my Department's property portfolio was valued at £1,491 million.

Sickness Absence

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff in the Department were on long term sick leave in each of the last five years. [109251]

Ms Rosie Winterton: My Department monitors the number of days lost to sickness year on year but cannot identify how many were attributable to long term absence without incurring disproportionate cost. 20 working days is the review point for considering whether a medical referral is appropriate, following which each case is judged on its own merits.

The number of days lost to sickness absence throughout the civil service is published annually by the Cabinet Office in "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service", the most recent of which (for the calendar year 2001) was announced by ministerial statement on 19 December 2002, and copies placed in the Libraries of the House. The 1999, 2000 and 2001 reports are available on the Cabinet Office website at www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/civilservice/publications/sickness/index.htm.

The figures for 2002 will be announced in due course.

My Department is committed to managing sick absence effectively and in meeting the 2003 target for reducing sickness absence (to an average of 7.5 days per person annually).

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HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum Treaties

7. Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the treaties governing asylum to which the UK is a signatory. [109761]

Beverley Hughes: We continue to work with UNHCR and others to support the effective operation of the 1951 Refugee Convention, and to implement domestic measures which ensure that protection is granted to those who need it and abusive claims are dealt with robustly.

The nature and extent of migration is very different now to that which pertained 50 years ago and there is broad agreement that the Refugee Convention and ECHR need to be modernised to reflect the current circumstances. We are working with UNHCR and others to achieve this.

Counter-terrorism Review

16. Mr. Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he has taken to implement the recommendation of Lord Carlile of Berriew's review on counter-terrorism. [109770]

Hilary Benn: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary will tomorrow place in the Library copies of his response to Lord Carlile, outlining progress on the recommendations made in his Report on the Terrorism Act 2000 and sections 21–23 in Part 4 of the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001.

My right hon. Friend is grateful to Lord Carlile for the work that he has undertaken which has found that the Act is being applied properly, and fairly.

Drug-related Crime

19. Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the link between acquisitive crime and drug addiction. [109773]

Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Research confirms a strong link between problematic drug misuse and acquisitive crime. Approximately 65 per cent. of arrestees in The New English and Welsh Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (NEW-ADAM) research programme tested positive for one or more illegal drug. Early findings from compulsory testing on charge show similar links. For example in the Nottingham area, 50 per cent. charged proved positive for heroin or cocaine.

Asylum Seekers

20. Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to visit the Appeals Processing Centre in the Home Office to discuss the backlog of cases. [109774]

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Beverley Hughes: I have no immediate plans to visit the Appeals Processing Centre (APC). I visited APC in 2002 when I discussed issues relating to the processing of the backlog.

Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of asylum claims receive a decision within two months. [109771]

Beverley Hughes: The Government's targets for reducing the time taken for decisions on asylum claims have so far been met and most applicants can expect to receive an initial decision in two months.

The latest quarter for which there are confirmed statistics is April to September 2002 when 76 per cent. of new substantive applications received initial decisions within two months.

Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have been given permission to remain in the UK in each of the past three years. [109772]

Beverley Hughes: In 2002, 41,940 principal applicants were granted asylum or exceptional leave to remain at the initial decision stage, or had their appeal allowed by the Immigration Appellate Authority (IAA), compared with 39,180 in 2001, and 35,535 in 2000, and include cases decided as part of the backlog clearance exercise. Cases granted exceptional leave to remain are reviewed at the end of the period of exceptional leave and may then be subject to removal.

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have been refused support by NASS on the basis of not having made their claim as soon as is reasonably practicable after arriving in the UK on each day since 8 January. [109570]

Beverley Hughes: It is planned to publish statistics on the operation of section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, which came into force on 8 January 2003, by the end of May 2003, subject to quality assurance of the data.

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the circumstances under which an asylum-seeking family would be detained if removal was not imminent. [110065]

Beverley Hughes: As we made clear in our White Paper "Secure Borders, Safe Haven", families may be detained in line with our stated policy on the use of Immigration Act powers of detention. As such, detention may be appropriate in the following circumstances: initially, whilst identity and basis of claim are being established; where there is a risk of non-compliance with the conditions of temporary admission or release; or to effect removal. In addition, families may also be detained as part of the fast-track asylum process at Oakington Reception Centre.

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria are used by his Department to assess whether an asylum-seeking family poses a high risk of absconding. [110067]

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Beverley Hughes: Immigration officers take a range of factors into account when assessing whether or not an individual or family is likely to comply with the terms of temporary admission or release. These factors include: evidence of previous absconding; evidence of participation in a determined attempt to breach immigration laws; previous history of compliance with the requirements of immigration control; ties with the United Kingdom; and any incentives to remain in contact. Each case is considered on its individual merits.

Mr. Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what medical screening is given to those seeking political asylum. [110076]

Beverley Hughes: Asylum seekers attending the Induction Centre at Dover are offered health screening. We will extend this as we develop a network of induction centres. The screening is undertaken by nurse practitioners and can include a check for TB. In addition, passengers, including asylum seekers, arriving at UK airports may be referred to the Port Medical Inspector.

Asylum seekers housed in the proposed, trial accommodation centres will have access to on-site health care. On arrival at a centre, they will register with the on-site doctor; the extent of previous screening will be confirmed and arrangements made for any follow-up treatment.

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