House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 12 Feb 2004 (pt 43)

12 Feb 2004 : Column 1712W—continued

Driving Convictions

Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the criteria to ensure a successful conviction for the charge of causing death by dangerous driving. [154334]

Paul Goggins [holding answer 11 February 2004]: A Home Office led review of road traffic offences involving bad driving is in progress. Charging practice in respect of the offence of causing death by dangerous driving has been taken into account during the course of the review. The review is nearing conclusion and will be followed by a public consultation exercise. We hope to publish the consultation paper soon.

Drugs Treatment (Wales)

Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) drug rehabilitation centres, (b) people treated in drug rehabilitation centres and (c) drug rehabilitation centre places there were in Wales in each year since 1997. [151733]

Mr. Touhig: I have been asked to reply.

Figures for (a) and (c) are not held centrally and figures for (b) are not available for 1997.

The Drug Misuse Database, which held records on a calendar year basis, shows 3,358 notified clients in treatment in Wales in 1998 and 5,436 in 1999.

The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) was launched in April 2001 and is reviewed at the end of every financial year, hence figures are published on a financial year basis. For financial year 2001–02 NTDMS records 7,648 notified clients in treatment in Wales.

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Extraditions (Russia)

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many extradition requests have been made by the Russian authorities in the last five years; and how many have been granted. [154762]

Caroline Flint: General extradition arrangements as between the UK and the Russian Federation have been in place since 2001. To date, there have been four Russian requests for extradition. One of those cases is outstanding. None of the other three requests was granted.

Female Prisoners

Mrs. Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many pregnant women there are in prison; how many there were in each of the last five years; what policies the Prison Service has in place for the care and treatment of pregnant women; and whether these policies cover (a) dietary requirements, (b) access to showers and (c) requirements for the safe and respectful transfer of pregnant prisoners. [154218]

Paul Goggins: Precise information on the number of pregnant women in prison is not available, but recent estimates based on a survey suggest that at any one time about 120 women prisoners are pregnant.

Prison Service healthcare departments liaise with local NHS midwifery services and antenatal care is normally provided by midwives from the local NHS Trusts. The objective remains that these women have the same access to these services as the local population. The care plan for them will include diet and hygiene provision in line with the NHS policy.

The escorting procedures for pregnant women is covered by the Prison Service Security Manual and, where a woman's pregnancy is known to a prison, the prison is expected to assess the appropriate means of transport for her. This can involve the use of a private vehicle.

Firearms Consultative Committee

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he last met members of the representative bodies for shooting to discuss the future of the Firearms Consultative Committee; [154084]

(3) which members of the Firearms Consultative Committee have met Home Office Ministers to discuss the committee and its future; and when; [154086]

(4) what reasons underlay his decision not to consult representatives of shooting associations on the dissolution of the Firearms Consultative Committee; [154087]

(5) which consultations he undertook with stakeholders before the decision was taken to dissolve the Firearms Consultative Committee. [154092]

Caroline Flint: We have not met representative bodies for this purpose. As the Home Secretary announced in his written statement on 30 January, we have decided

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that it is important to consult on firearms matters on a broader basis than allowed by the statutory provision for the Firearms Consultative Committee.

Graffiti

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what penalties are available to magistrates when considering the punishment of those who graffiti. [153605]

Paul Goggins: Writing graffiti is an offence under the Criminal Damage Act 1971. Where the value of the damage is below £5000 the offender will be tried in a magistrates' court. The offender will then be subject to a maximum sentence of three months imprisonment or a £5,000 fine. If the value of the damage is above £5,000 the offender will be tried in a Crown Court and be subject to a maximum of 10 years imprisonment or an unlimited fine. At either court, community punishment is available for use where the court considers that the offence merits more than a fine but is not sufficiently serious to warrant imprisonment.

In addition the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 provides for local authorities to issue Fixed Penalty Notices for graffiti and fly posting. This power will be brought into force in March. Offenders will have to pay a £50 penalty or be prosecuted through the courts. Councils already have similar powers to tackle littering and dog fouling.

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will propose legislative provisions for magistrates to impose sentences on those who graffiti public and private buildings which involve cleaning up graffiti; [153608]

Paul Goggins: The removal of graffiti is one of the tasks carried out by offenders who are sentenced to community punishment, the new name for community service. Community punishment is a sentencing option available to magistrates when convicting those who graffiti. The work done by offenders on community punishment orders is decided locally within the framework of the national standards for the supervision of offenders in the community. Dedicated litter and graffiti squads exist in a number of probation areas.

Heroin (Criminal Activity)

Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the costs of criminal activity in connection with heroin use in each of the last five years. [154829]

Caroline Flint: Estimates of the costs of drug-related crime are not available annually, nor are they available by individual drug. However, a recent study published by the Home Office provides estimates of the total economic and social costs of Class A drug use and puts these in the range of £10.1 billion to £17.4 billion for the year 2000. The majority of these costs are attributable to heroin and crack cocaine users. The total figure includes the costs of drug-related crime, which are estimated to fall in the range £8.8 billion to £15.8 billion. The costs of

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drug-related crime include victim costs and those accruing to courts, prisons and other parts of the criminal justice system.

HMP Bronzefield

Mr. Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when HMP Bronzefield will open. [153275]

Paul Goggins [holding answer 9 February 2004]: Her Majesty's Prison Bronzefield is due to receive its first prisoners on 17 June 2004 as specified in the contract.

Home Detention Curfew

Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who will decide whether to grant a home detention curfew until the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service takes up his appointment on 1 June. [149087]

Paul Goggins [holding answer 26 January 2004]: Decisions on whether to grant a prisoner release on home detention curfew are made by prison governors. There will however be exceptional cases where an offender who has successfully passed the risk assessment may be considered unsuitable for Home Detention Curfew (HOC) if to grant HDC would undermine public confidence in the scheme. The Home Secretary has decided that such exceptional cases should be referred to the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service who will take the final decision whether or not to grant HDC.

Martin Narey was appointed Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service on 6 January 2004. He will deal with all such decisions.

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been released on the Home Detention Curfew Scheme. [154320]

Paul Goggins: The Home Detention Curfew Scheme has been in operation since January 1999. Up to and including 31 December 2003, there have been 86,000 people released on the scheme.

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