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24 May 2004 : Column 1406W—continued

Biometric Technology

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) cost to date and (b) projected cost is of developing biometric technology for inclusion in passports, broken down by financial year; and whether any portion of the expenditure is   included in the identity card set-up costs cited in his   statement of 11 November 2003, Official Report, column 178. [163325]

Mr. Browne: The cost incurred by the UK Passport Service to develop a facial biometric chip enabled passport is shown in the table.

Year	(£)
2003–04	850
2004–05	4,645
2005–06	625

The work being carried out to develop biometric technology for inclusion in passports is necessary to
 
24 May 2004 : Column 1407W
 
meet current International Civil Aviation Organisation (IACO) recommended standards for passports and therefore no portion of this expenditure is included in the identity card set-up costs.

Charity Commission

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many receivers and managers were appointed by the Charity Commissioners in (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03 and (c) 2003–04; what the total cost was to all charities of such appointments in each period; and what the (i) shortest and (ii) longest duration of receiver and manager appointments to a charity have been since April 2001. [172154]

Fiona Mactaggart: These are matters for the Charity   Commission as the Government Department responsible for the regulation of charities in England and Wales. The Director of Operations of the Charity Commission will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Commission for Racial Equality

Mr. Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consultations his Department has undertaken with race relations bodies about the effects of the Commission for Racial Equality Getting Results programme. [174388]

Fiona Mactaggart [holding answer 20 May 2004]: It is the responsibility of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) to set its own criteria for grant funding under the provisions of section 44 of the Race Relations Act 1976, and then to make decisions on individual applications on the basis of how well they meet those criteria. The CRE consulted widely on its proposals to move away from its previous policy of funding posts in bodies it supports, mainly Race Equality Councils, to funding projects focused on outcomes (ie the Getting Results programme). I understand that its partners welcomed the new approach, as do the Government.

Mr. Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the impact the Commission for Racial Equality's Getting Results programme on the delivery of race equality schemes. [174398]

Fiona Mactaggart [holding answer 20 May 2004]: The publication of a race equality scheme is a specific duty placed on certain public bodies under the Race Relations Act 1976 (Statutory Duties) Order 2001. The responsibility for delivering these schemes lies with the bodies listed in the order. Section 44 funding has never been intended to fund the delivery of this particular aspect of the Race Equality Duty. However, the Commission for Racial Equality informs me that one of the specific priorities for Getting Results funding in 2004–05 has been measuring the impact of the Race Equality Duty, and that £193,200 has been awarded to organisations under this priority. This is distinct from the delivery of race equality schemes.

Correspondence

Mr. Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter from
 
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the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton dated 1 March, with regard to Ms N. Islam, transferred from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. [170698]

Mr. Blunkett: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 6 May 2004.

Criminal Records Bureau

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Criminal Records Bureau is permitted to access Department of Health and Department of Education and Skills List 99 records when checking the suitability of individuals for work with children. [143483]

Ms Blears [holding answer 10 December 2003]: Section 115(6) of the Police Act 1997 gives provision for the Secretary of State for the Home Department to access lists held by the Department of Health and the Department for Education and Skills when checking individuals for work with children.

Criminals (New Identity Costs)

Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it a policy of the Government to require those convicted of crimes, who are provided with a new identity upon their release, to contribute to the costs involved where they have the means to do so. [163151]

Paul Goggins [holding answer 23 March 2004]: Most of the very small number of convicted criminals who need new identities on release from prison do so because, at some point in the criminal proceedings, they have decided to turn Queen's Evidence and appear as witnesses for the prosecution against their former partners in crime. Since in doing this they have helped to convict other (often more serious) offenders, then it is cost-effective for the state to offer to pay for any necessary change to their identity, and any other associated costs. In other cases the state is required to take reasonable steps to fulfil its duty to protect the lives of those threatened by others. Only in the most exceptional circumstances would this include a formal change of identity and only where the threat to life is clearly evidenced and the change of identity considered appropriate by the police.

Departmental Buildings

Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the   Home Department what (a) renovation and (b) maintenance projects on buildings (i) owned and (ii) rented by his Department were undertaken in each of the last five years; and what the associated costs were of each. [163954]

Fiona Mactaggart: The Department does not maintain central records of the cost of every building refurbishment project carried out by the Department including its Executive agencies and to provide the information requested would be at disproportionate cost. However, in central London and Croydon, the approximate expenditure on such projects which includes elements of maintenance and alterations to house additional staff, over the last five years, is as follows.
 
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	£ million
1999–2000	6.7
2000–01	(82)35.2
2001–02	11.5
2002–03	9.2
2003–04	4.0

⁽⁸²⁾ Figures for 2000–01 reflects the refurbishment of Lunar House, Croydon which had a major upgrade that year.

Departmental Contracts

Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether companies that tender for his Department's contracts have to recognise the relevant trade union as a condition of winning that contract. [166592]

Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office does not ask companies to recognise the relevant trade union as a condition of winning Home Office contracts.

Government policy requires that all procurement must be transparent and non-discriminatory, and that contracts must be awarded on a value for money basis.

Departmental Staffing

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost to his Department of employing temporary staff through agencies was in each of the last five years. [163632]

Fiona Mactaggart [holding answer 31 March 2003]: The employment of temporary staff through employment agencies for the Core Home Office over the last five years is as follows:

	£
1999	6,500,408
2000	11,768,105
2001	20,669,056
2002	41,713,675
2003	54,466,279

The Stage 2 RAB Resource DEL for the Home Office over the same period was:

	£
1999–2000	7,076,102,000
2000–01	8,398,131,000
2001–02	10,261,856,000
2002–03	11,088,502,000
2003–04	11,836,009,000

Expenditure expressed as a percentage of the Home Office total DEL during the last five years was as follows:

	Percentage
1999–2000	0.09
2000–01	0.14
2001–02	0.20
2002–03	0.38
2003–04	0.46

 
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The Immigration and Nationality Directorate accounted for around half of the cost for each financial year.

The use of temporary staff provides the Home Office with cost effective, flexible resources which can be employed at very short notice. Their employment often allows the Department to react quickly to changes in the demands that it faces by deploying appropriately skilled and experienced individuals quickly to those areas of the business where they are most needed.

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