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22 Apr 2004 : Column 589W—continued
HOME DEPARTMENT
Al Tawhid
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the activities of Al Tawhid in the United Kingdom. [165904]
Mr. Blunkett [holding answer 19 April 2004]: Al Tawhid is a Sunni Palestinian organisation which appears to have close associations with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and al-Qaeda. Its stated aim is to overthrow the Jordanian monarchy and replace it with a fundamentalist Islamic regime. However, though it has some support here, it does not appear to be formally active in the UK.
Al-Muhajiroun
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will proscribe al-Muhajiroun under the anti-terrorism legislation; [165905]
(2) if he will make a statement on the activities of al-Muhajiroun. [165906]
Mr. Blunkett [holding answer 19 April 2004]: Al-Muhajiroun was established in 1996 and has members throughout Britain. It originated in Pakistan and has groups in a number of countries including the US. Its stated aim is the establishment of a worldwide Islamic way of life by openly attracting popular support amongst Islamic communities.
The list of proscribed organisations is kept under constant and active review. As a matter of policy, we do not comment on whether a particular organisation is being considered for proscription or de-proscription. Such decisions are and will continue to be taken only after the most careful consideration and on the basis of the best possible security advice. That will remain the basis for all decisions in the future.
Antisocial Behaviour
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures are in place to ensure courts give particular consideration to the impact of antisocial behaviour on victims, witnesses and the wider community. [165917]
Ms Blears: Section 16 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 requires courts to give particular consideration to the impact of antisocial behaviour on victims, witnesses and the wider community in all nuisance-related housing possession cases.
The Magistrates' Association implemented new sentencing guidelines on 1 January 2004, including for the first time guidelines for the offence of breach of an antisocial behaviour order (ASBO). The guidelines reflect the seriousness of the offence and direct the magistrate to consider the impact on the victim.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many areas have been designated as an area of persistent antisocial behaviour by a senior Merseyside police officer since the inception of this power. [165919]
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Ms Blears: Merseyside police tell me that three areas have been designated as areas where antisocial behaviour is a significant and persistent problem since these powers came into force.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the new antisocial behaviour prosecutor teams in the Crown Prosecution Service. [166682]
The Solicitor-General: I have been asked to reply.
My right hon. Friend the Attorney General, together with the Secretary of State for the Home Department and the Director of Public Prosecutions, will be announcing today that 12 specialist Anti-Social Behaviour Expert Prosecutors have now taken up their post in hot spot areas around the country.
They will be dedicated to working closely with their local communities and colleagues in the Criminal Justice System, to combat antisocial behaviour, which, although at the lower end of the criminal scale of offences, are the cases which most affect law-abiding people, who remain trapped in their homes through fear of crime.
The Home Office, Crown Prosecution Service and Department of Constitutional Affairs will be working closely together to ensure that the Anti-Social Behaviour Expert Prosecutors will achieve their objective of ensuring that the maximum benefit is derived from the new powers given to them by the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 as well as spreading best practice and providing expert advice.
Background Checks (EU)
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts regarding requirements for checks on people coming to the UK from other EU countries before they can take up positions working with children or vulnerable people. [165832]
Paul Goggins [holding answer 19 April 2004]: On 18 March 2004 the Home Office held a seminar on collecting and sharing of information on child sex offenders across Europe. The seminar provided an opportunity for policy officials from across Europe to discuss how we can improve the collection and sharing of information on those who pose a risk of sexual harm. In particular the seminar examined how member states can ensure that people who pose a risk to children do not evade any requirements or disqualifications put on them in one country by moving to another.
We are now considering the options that arose from discussions at the seminar on how we can take this area of child protection forward.
Car Crime
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many car crimes there have been in each year since 1997; and how many resulted from the theft of car keys. [166836]
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Ms Blears: The number of thefts of and thefts from vehicles (including cars, light vans, motorbikes and mopeds) since 1997 as measured by the British Crime Survey (BCS) are provided in the table.
| Period | Thefts of vehicles | Thefts from vehicles |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 370,000 | 2,157,000 |
| 1999 | 328,000 | 1,807,000 |
| 2001–02 interviews | 315,000 | 1,491 ,000 |
| 2002–03 interviews | 278,000 | 1,425,000 |
The BCS also provides the proportion of thefts of or from cars or light vans where entry into the vehicle involved the use of car keys (unlike for the numbers of offences above, these proportions do not include motorbikes or mopeds). The percentages from 1997 to 2001–02 are provided in the table.
| Period | Thefts of vehicles | Thefts from vehicles |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 7 | 4 |
| 1999 | 8 | 1 |
| 2001–02 interviews | 12 | 2 |
Chromatography Tests
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has evaluated on chromatography tests for traces of explosives in human hair. [166844]
Mr. Blunkett: A preliminary study into the recovery of explosive traces from the surface of human hair was carried out by the Forensic Explosives Laboratory, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory on behalf of the Home Office.
Subsequent research into the analysis of explosive traces extracted from human hair was carried out and included evaluation by gas chromatographic techniques. This work was published by Sanders et al in Science and Justice vol. 42, No. 3 (2002) pp137–142. I will send a copy to my hon. Friend.
Correctional Policy HQ Command
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the intended size of the Correctional Policy Headquarters Command is. [165881]
Paul Goggins: The size of the Home Office Correctional Policy, Prison Service and Probation Service Headquarters is being considered as part of the ongoing departmental reform exercise.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment has been made of the Correctional Policy Headquarters' administrative requirements; and what estimate has been made of the costs. [165882]
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Paul Goggins: The Home Office Correctional Policy, Prison Service and Probation Service Headquarters administration requirements are being considered as part of the ongoing departmental reform exercise. Headquarters costs in 2004–05 will be met from within existing provision. Funding for 2005–06 onwards will be agreed as part of the current spending review.
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