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20 May 2004 : Column 1130W—continued

Burglary

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many burglaries per 1,000 households there have been in the Metropolitan Police Authority area in each year since 1999; and what the detection rate each year was for domestic burglaries. [170491]

Ms Blears: The available information is given in the table:
Recorded offences of burglary in a dwelling in the Metropolitan Police District

	Number of burglaries per 1,000 households	Detection rate (%)
1999–2000	28.6	9.4
2000–01	25.2	9.9
2001–02	26.6	9.3
2002–03	24.0	11.8

Note:
Figures for 2002–03 will have been affected by the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard on 1 April 2002.

CCTV

Mr. Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much public funding has been spent on CCTV cameras in Blackpool, South since 1997. [173062]

Caroline Flint: Since 1997, the Home Office has provided £737,350 to Blackpool for CCTV schemes.

Allocation of that funding locally, is a matter for Blackpool Borough Council and Lancashire Constabulary. The information is not held centrally.

Counter-terrorism

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what role officials from (a) his Department, (b) the Home Security Services and (c) members of the Joint Terrorism Control Unit played in the simulation exercise to counter nuclear-armed terrorists carried out at the NATO headquarters
 
20 May 2004 : Column 1131W
 
on 4 May; and what assessment he has made of its applicability to situations in the United Kingdom. [172313]

Mr. MacShane: I have been asked to reply.

Officials from the Cabinet Office represented the UK Government at a seminar hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Brussels on 3 May. In total, over 55 officials and experts from 15 countries and half a dozen international bodies were present at the event.

The seminar addressed issues associated with the terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction in Europe, and focussed on the means by which terrorists might be prevented from acquiring and using such weapons.

The Government already has an extensive programme to develop our ability to manage threats posed by terrorism. This includes regularly-reviewed preparations to deal with the consequences of a Chemical/Biological/Radiological/Nuclear (CBRN) attack. The Government also takes seriously the threat posed by poorly secured CBRN material, and has worked with others to improve security in countries holding such material.

Crime (Manchester)

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the percentage change in (a) overall recorded crime, (b) recorded violent crime, (c) burglaries and (d) vehicle thefts in Manchester, Central has been since 1997. [174277]

Ms Blears: The information requested is not available centrally.

Manchester, Central is a Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) area. Data at CDRP level has only been published from 1999–2000 onwards. Detailed statistics at CDRP level are available for 2002–03 on the new Home Office website: http://www.crimestatistics.org.uk

Mr. Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the percentage change in (a) overall recorded crime, (b) recorded violent crime, (c) burglaries and (d) vehicle thefts in Manchester, Blackley has been since 1997. [172891]

Ms Blears: The information requested is not available centrally.

Blackley comes within the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership's (CDRP) in the Greater Manchester area. Data at CDRP level has only been published from 1999–2000 onwards. Detailed statistics at CDRP level are available for 2002–03 on the new Home Office website: http://www.crimestatistics.org.uk

Crime Statistics

Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the percentage change in (a) overall recorded crime, (b) recorded violent crime, (c) burglaries and (d) vehicle thefts in Sittingbourne and Sheppey has been since 1997. [170288]

Ms Blears: The information requested is not available centrally.
 
20 May 2004 : Column 1132W
 

Sittingbourne and Sheppey lies within the Swale Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) area. Data at CDRP level has only been published from 1999–2000 onwards. Detailed statistics at CDRP level are available for 2002–03 on the new Home Office website: http://www.crimestatistics.org.uk

Cyclists

Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice the Government offers (a) the police and (b) transport authorities about cyclists cycling on pavements. [165964]

Caroline Flint: Chief officers of police are best placed to assess the nature and cause of cycling offences locally.

To help the police with enforcement we have made it possible for Community Support Officers (CSOs) appointed under the Police Reform Act 2002 to issue £30 fixed penalty notices for cycling inconsiderately or irresponsibly on pavements.

The cycling infrastructure and environment are currently under improvement as a result of our National Cycling Strategy. We expect this improvement to reduce the incentive to cycle on the pavement.

Dangerous Driving

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to require drivers to display (a) insurance and (b) MOT documentation on their car windscreens; and if he will make a statement. [169069]

Caroline Flint: We have no current plans to require drivers to display insurance or MOT documentation.

Driving without insurance or MOT are, however, serious offences and we are determined that they should be tackled effectively.

We appointed Professor David Greenaway of the University of Nottingham to carry out an independent review of motor insurance arrangements in the UK and to advise on how to improve its effectiveness and reduce uninsured driving. Professor Greenaway has just presented his report and we shall be studying it carefully with a view to appropriate action as soon as possible.

The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency are intending to establish in 2004–05 an MOT database. This will enable the police to query MOT status details immediately from the roadside and make enforcement easier.

Diesel Spillages

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many drivers of diesel vehicles have been prosecuted for overfilling fuel tanks not fitted with non-spill fuel caps, which then caused dangerous diesel spillages, in each of the past three years. [168626]

Caroline Flint: Available information held centrally on prosecutions does not include the circumstances of the offence so that offences involving fuel spillages cannot be distinguished from other offences within the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 group of offences.
 
20 May 2004 : Column 1133W
 

Driving Licences

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answers of 4 May 2004, Official Report, column 1398W, and 12 May 2004, Official Report, columns 351–52W, on driving licences, if he will obtain from the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency an estimate of the number of people who have five points or more on their driving licence. [173995]

Caroline Flint: I understand from DVLA that such an estimate could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 10 May, reference 169445, how many people lost their driving licence under section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 (penalty points system) in each year since 1990. [174120]

Caroline Flint: Information, taken from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database, is given in the table.
Number of persons disqualified⁽⁶⁾ under section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 (penalty points system) by type of court, England and Wales, 1990–2002

	Type of court
	Magistrates court	Crown court	Total all courts
1990	33,017	275	33,292
1991	26,705	146	26,851
1992	29,194	121	29,315
1993	31,824	43	31,867
1994	33,128	21	33,149
1995	31,652	262	31,914
1996	31,006	427	31 ,433
1997	30,939	181	31,120
1998	23,695	170	23,865
1999	34,146	64	34,210
2000	33,497	57	33,554
2001	30,004	75	30,079
2002	30,336	162	30,498

⁽⁶⁾ The Home Office Court Proceedings Database does not identify the individual offence under which the disqualification on reaching 12 points within three years was ordered by the courts.

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