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Immigration Database

Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 12 July 2004, Official Report, column 983W, on immigration, what
 
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time it normally takes for the General Case Information Database to be updated with decisions; and how long it took in the case of Mr. Ahmed. [184765]

Mr. Browne [holding answer 16 July 2004]: Decisions made within General Group would normally be entered onto the General Case Information Database (G-CID) at the time of decision.

Following initial inquiries, General Group's decision was entered on G-CID six weeks after receiving Mr. Ahmed's file.

IMPACT System

Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions have taken place between (a) his officials and (b) the Police Information Technology Organisation and representatives of the Scottish Intelligence Database regarding its suitability for extension throughout Great Britain; what assessment he has made of the costs and time scale of such a roll-out; and what cost and time scale he envisages for the completion of the IMPACT system. [184902]

Caroline Flint [holding answer 19 July 2004]: In my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary's response to the House on 22 June 2004, following publication of Sir Michael Bichard's report he told the House the Government shall introduce a national intelligence IT system for the police. Preparations for this are under way. The new system will take full account of the Scottish Intelligence Database.

Internet Fraud

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the actions taken by (a) his Department and (b) the bodies for which he is responsible to combat fraud conducted over the internet. [178927]

Paul Goggins: Government seeks to educate computer users about the risks of fraud facilitated using the internet. The Home Office website provides advice on avoiding internet fraud, while the Department of Trade and Industry has a campaign entitled "Don't be a Mug" advising on scams and rip-offs, including internet scams.

The Home Office has recently launched the 'e-tailing mini site', which forms part of the Crime Reduction Website. This provides information to help both businesses and consumers protect themselves specifically when using the internet. We have also recently published, jointly with APACS, a leaflet on safe credit card use. This includes a section on using cards safely over the internet.

The Home Office is represented on an industry-led Steering Group which aims to tackle 'Card Not Present' (CNP) fraud (which includes fraud over the internet). We support practical measures being introduced by the industry to increase levels of security for internet transactions. These include Address Verification Services (AVS), Card Security Code (CSC), Mastercard Secure Code and Verified by Visa which are already making a significant impact on CNP Fraud.

There is no specific organisation which has a specific mandate to combat fraud where it is facilitated utilising the internet.
 
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There are however a range of specialist units within forces which investigate fraud cases, regardless of the media used to commit or facilitate the offence, consulting computer crime units as appropriate in cases where technical expertise is required. Where cases involve serious and organised computer-enabled criminality at national and international levels the case may be dealt with by the National Hi Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) within the National Crime Squad.

The West African Organised Crime Section of the National Criminal Intelligence Service investigates cases of advance fee fraud—in which letters are widely distributed by post, fax and email—which commonly lead to fraud, personal identity theft and corporate impersonation. They also deal with cases of website spoofing and obtaining goods by deception by West African criminal groups.

Law enforcement is also engaged in public awareness and education campaigns. For instance in October 2003 NHTCU issued advice together with the British Bankers Association and Association of Payment and Card Services (APACS) on how the public could avoid phishing attacks.

LD50 Tests

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many LD50 tests were licensed in each year since 1997 for (a) cosmetics and (b) dual purpose products; how many of the licenses were issued to the Health Protection Agency; how many animals were involved in each case, broken down by (i) type and (ii) breed; and what products were tested. [181812]

Caroline Flint: No licensed LD50 tests have been conducted, under the regulatory provisions of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, since 1997—either for cosmetic products, or in respect of dual purpose products where one of the intended purposes is use as a cosmetic.

Ministerial Air Travel

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for each year since 1997 the number of miles flown by each Minister on official departmental business. [181870]

Fiona Mactaggart: Detailed information for all Ministers in respect of UK travel is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, since 1999 the Government have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The Government have also published on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House. These report information reaching back to 1995–96. Information for 2003–04 is currently being assembled and will be published shortly.

All ministerial and civil service travel is undertaken in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code, Travel by Ministers, and Civil Service Management Code, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.
 
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Mr. Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total cost of air travel between Northern Ireland and Great Britain was for (a) ministers and (b) officials in his Department in the latest year for which figures are available. [182129]

Fiona Mactaggart: Detailed information for all Ministers (and staff) in respect of UK travel is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Money Laundering

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents possibly related to money laundering (a) the Inland Revenue and (b) Customs and Excise reported to the appropriate investigative agencies in each year since 1997; and how many prosecutions each year resulted from these reports. [185165]

Caroline Flint: Powers to allow the Inland Revenue to pass disclosures relating to incidents of suspected money laundering to other investigatory agencies came into force with other provisions of the Anti-terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 on 14 December 2001.

Since that time the number of disclosures passed to the appropriate agencies by the Inland Revenue in each tax year has been as follows:

	Number
2001–02	0
2002–03	3
2003–04	7

The Inland Revenue do not have the power to prosecute incidents of suspected money laundering.

For HM Customs and Excise (HMCE), the investigation of money laundering is an assigned matter with the result that, where investigators from the organisation discover incidences of its occurrence, they are empowered to investigate and prosecute the offence themselves and do not need to make disclosures to another agency.

HMCE may refer cases to another agency where their investigations find that money laundering is related to offences which are not assigned, for example people trafficking or robbery. Since 2001, 17 money laundering cases have been referred to other agencies for them to pursue.

The information provided by disclosures relating to incidents of money laundering is used by law enforcement agencies in a variety of ways to detect crime and trace the proceeds of criminal activity. For example, such information may contribute to an ongoing investigation, be the trigger for a new one, or be held on the relevant intelligence databases for future cases.

Given the variety of ways in which this information is used, it is not possible to link particular disclosures with particular prosecutions and convictions in the majority of cases.
 
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