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17 Mar 2004 : Column 347W—continued
Huntingdon Life Sciences
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what severity limits were allocated to (a) Study DKN 112/033062 and (b) Study DKN 137/033686 conducted at Huntingdon Life Sciences; what his Department's assessment was of the potential benefits of these studies; and how his Department arrived at this assessment. [159794]
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Caroline Flint [holding answer 8 March 2004]: The severity limits assigned to the protocols relating to these studies, as set out in Guidance on the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (HC321), were respectively "moderate" and "substantial". The potential benefit in both cases was determination of the toxicity of certain compounds and risks they might pose to man and the environment. Decisions on whether and on what terms to license such studies are informed by professional assessments made by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate in accordance with relevant parts of section five of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. The aim has been to ensure that animal use only occurs when justified, and that in those circumstances animal suffering in such studies is minimised, consistent with satisfactorily achieving the scientific purpose.
Identity Cards
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether personal data stored on a national identity database will be exported or made available abroad. [157300]
Beverley Hughes: As set out in "Identity Cards: The Next Steps" (Cm 6020), disclosure of information held on the National Identity Register would only be authorised in specific circumstances. Such disclosure would be subject to legal and procedural safeguards and independent oversight. There are no plans to authorise disclosure of information from the National Identity Register to overseas organisations.
Impairment Tests
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the impairment tests which do not require the use of equipment will be introduced; and when the code of practice will be published. [161187]
Caroline Flint: We expect impairment tests which do not require the use of equipment to detect drivers who are under the influence of drugs to be introduced later this year. A Code of Practice is currently under preparation and will be published prior to the introduction of the tests.
International Rights Covenant
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what cross-departmental discussions involving his Department have taken place regarding the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights. [161479]
Fiona Mactaggart: I am not aware of any cross-Whitehall discussions about the Covenant involving Home Office Ministers or officials. My Officials, along with officials in other Government Departments whose responsibilities are covered by the Covenant, contributed to the UK's last report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on the implementation of the UK's obligations under the Covenant in January 2001. Following the UN Committee's recommendations in 2002, my officials contributed, in Spring 2003, to the Government's submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights' inquiry into how the Government are
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taking forward the UN Committee's recommendations. The Home Office's primary responsibility covered by the Covenant concerns racial discrimination.
National Dog Register
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will reinstate a national dog register. [161695]
Ms Blears [holding answer 16 March 2004]: There are no plans to do so.
Online Crime Reporting
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many minor crimes have been reported online in each year since the service became available. [158042]
Ms Blears: The Police Information Technology Organisation, which hosts the minor crimes online reporting facility through www.police.uk, informs me that the service became available in May 2001. There were 2,009 reports completed by the public from then until the end of the 2001 calendar year. There were 13,774 completed reports in 2002, 14,982 in 2003 and 2,318 in the first two months of this year.
Police
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many accidents involving police vehicles took place in each London borough in 2003. [160209]
Caroline Flint: Information on the number of police vehicle accidents broken down by individual London boroughs is not collected centrally.
The Metropolitan Police Service does, however, record collisions involving police vehicles and the table attached has been provided by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were in England and Wales in (a) May 1993 and (b) May 1997. [161677]
Ms Blears: On 30 May 1993 there were 127,969 police officers in England and Wales. Between April 1995 and March 2002 police strength was collected only twice a year (March and September). In March 1997 police strength had decreased to 127,158.
There were 49,554 police (support) staff in May 1993. This had increased to 53,011 by March 1997.
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make a statement on the reasons for requiring the returns of police officer numbers from constabularies for the purpose of his recent announcement on a different basis to the normal quarterly and annual return provided to his office by constabularies; [161824]
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- (2) how many police officers there are per force on the basis of the normal quarterly and annual returns provided by constabularies to his Department. [161825]
Ms Blears: The Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics Directorate collects, analyses and publishes a full and detailed breakdown of numbers of police officers and other police staff.
However given the substantial investment that this Government has made to increase police officer numbers, Ministers have, from time to time sought separate reports on progress being made on the delivery of our aim to increase strength and police visibility through the Crime Fighting Fund.
Reports were sought for January 2001, January 2002 and August 2003 and for December 2003. These reports are based on information which forces have readily to hand on how many police officers they currently employ and should not create a significant additional burden for forces.
The following table provides information on police officers strength on 30 September 2003, which was published on 2 March 2004.
(27) Less staff on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave (comparable with previously published figures)
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Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what his Department estimates would be the necessary increase in funding to Leicestershire Police Authority to rectify the current budget deficit; [155485]
- (2) what assessment he has made of the current financial position of the Leicestershire Police Authority; and if he will make a statement; [155486]
(3) what assessment he has made of the funding shortfalls to police authorities in England and Wales. [155488]
Ms Blears [holding answer 23 February 2004]: All police authorities in England and Wales will receive a 3.25 per cent. increase in general grants in 2004–05, above the police pay award increase of 3 per cent. and general inflation projections of 2.6 per cent.
The arrangement was made to ensure that all police authorities receive a reasonable increase. In addition, funding is provided for a range of targeted programmes and capital provision.
Leicestershire Police Authority will receive general grant funding of £102.0 million in 2004–05, an increase of £3.2 million. On top of this, it will receive over £10 million for targeted programmes and capital provision.
Leicestershire have set a final budget of £138.1 million for 2004–05, an increase of 6.1 per cent. over this year. The police authority's decision will have taken into account grant allocations.
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department by how much in (a) percentage and (b) cash terms Leicestershire Police grant has increased in each year from 1997–98 to 2004–05. [155487]
Ms Blears [holding answer 23 February 2004]: The information is set out in the table.
| Generalgovernment grants (28) , (29) | Increase | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ million | £ million | Percentage | ||
| 1997–98 | 83.9 | — | — | |
| 1998–99 | 85.3 | 1.4 | 1.6 | |
| 1999–00 | 87.9 | 2.6 | 3.0 | |
| 2000–01 | 90.6 | 2.7 | 3.1 | |
| 2001–02 | 94.6 | 4.0 | 4.4 | |
| 2001–02(30) | 92.2 | |||
| 2002–03 | 94.5 | 2.3 | 2.5 | |
| 2003–04 | 98.8 | 4.3 | 4.5 | |
| 2004–05 | 102.0 | 3.2 | 3.3 | |
(28) General Government Grants comprise Home Office police grant, ODPM Revenue Support Grant and National Non-Domestic Rates.
(29) In addition to general grants, Leicestershire benefited from funding from the Crime Fighting Fund, Rural Policing Fund, Basic Command Unit funding, Community Support Officer funding, Special Priority Payments, Airwave, the DNA Expansion Programme, capital grant (excluding Supplementary Credit Approvals) and the Premises Improvement Fund. £0.9 million in 1997–98, £0.8 million in 1998–99, £1.1 million in 1999–2000, £2.0 million in 2000–01, £8.4 million in 2001–02, £6.3 million in 2002–03, £8.5 million in 2003–04 and an estimated £8.8 million in 2004–05.
(30) Figures for 2001–02 are not directly comparable with 2002–03 due to the change in the funding arrangements of NCS and NCIS. Adjusted figures for 2001–02 are therefore included in the table.
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Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether revenues raised from speed cameras were included in the calculation of the Thames Valley police budget for (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04. [160652]
Caroline Flint: Revenue raised from speed cameras is not taken into account in the setting of Police grant or local budgets.
Fines and fixed penalties for speeding offences, like those for all other criminal offences, are paid to the Treasury. Some fixed penalty income from speed limit enforcement by camera can be netted off, but its use is very strictly ring-fenced for the purposes of meeting expenditure incurred in the prevention or detection of speeding, or red light, offences or in the enforcement of or proceedings in respect of such offences. The netting-off provides for cost-recovery only and furnishes no income for other purposes.
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