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26 Jan 2005 : Column 384W—continued
Biometric Passports
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the results of the UK Passport Service biometrics pilot will be made public. [210156]
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Mr. Browne: The UKPS Biometrics Enrolment Trial final report will be delivered in February 2005. Quality Assurance of the report will follow and the outcome of the trial released during March 2005.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of (a) police officers and (b) police staff have submitted DNA samples to the police DNA elimination database. [210164]
Caroline Flint: The provision of a DNA sample by police personnel for inclusion on the Police Elimination Database (FED) is voluntary for those who were in employment by the police when the Database was set up in 2000. It is a condition of service for personnel who have joined the police since 1 August 2002.
Approximately 39 per cent. of all police officers and police staff have submitted a DNA sample for inclusion on the Police Elimination Database. A breakdown is not available of the numbers submitted by police officers and police staff.
As at 21 January 2005, there were 78,639 DNA profiles taken from serving officers and police staff in England and Wales retained on the PED. Of these, 62,518 profiles were from police officers and 4,325 from police staff. This represents 44 per cent. of police officers and 5.8 per cent. of police staff.
It was estimated in 2000 at the inception of the PED that approximately 75,000 officers and other police service staff needed to be on the Database because of their role at crime scenes. The vast majority of police officers and police staff who attend crime scenes or handle forensic material now have a DNA profile retained on the Police Elimination Database.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the length of time it will take to check biometric passports at airports, compared with non-biometric passports; and if he will make a statement. [210166]
Mr. Browne: The new biometric passports (ePassports) will have a chip that is to be read by readers located at airports. While all ePassports should conform to a number of international standards, there remains room for interpretation, and thus there will be differences in the way the passports are presented to, and read by, the readers. The time taken to read an ePassport will therefore depend upon the nationality of the ePassport presented and the make/model of the scanner to which it is presented. Trials to assess the interoperability of nations' ePassports and candidate readers are being conducted by some 20 nations. UKPS is fully involved in these. In addition we will be conducting our own tests in UK on a variety of ePassport/reader combinations.
Until satisfactory interoperability can be demonstrated between UK preferred readers and a range of ePassports from other nations, the time to check biometric passports at UK airports cannot be accurately determined. However, current test results indicate that the average reading time is likely to fall in the range 7–10 seconds. It is difficult to make direct and meaningful comparison with non-biometric passport checks since this depends on the actual processes involved.
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Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether individuals applying for a biometric passport will be required to submit (a) a standard passport photograph and (b) a higher-resolution photograph taken by other means; and if he will make a statement. [210167]
Mr. Browne: Applicants for passport renewal or the issue of a first passport will be required to submit a photograph that meets the recently issued ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) standards.
Guidance has been issued and is readily available to the public by means of a detailed leaflet included with passport application forms. It advises on acceptable poses, headwear and facial expression in particular. We have been working with industry over the past year to ensure that photobooths and other photographic equipments are able to produce photographs that meet the new technical standards. It is therefore the expectation that an applicant will be easily able to obtain a photograph from a source that declares itself in conformance with UKPS standards as they have done hitherto.
UKPS is also modifying its own passport processing systems to scan these photographs to the higher resolution needed to meet the biometric passport standard.
Knives
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry proposals for introduction of a code of practice for retailers selling knives that would distinguish between advertising the sale of blades for domestic purposes and promoting the sale of combat knives. [209520]
Caroline Flint: Advertisements for the sale of weapons and knives in the printed media are subject to a self-regulatory system of controls administered by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) through its Code of Practice. The Code provides that advertisements should contain nothing that condones or is likely to provoke violence or anti-social behaviour. In addition, it is an offence to market a knife in a way which indicates that it is suitable for combat, or is otherwise likely to stimulate violent behaviour.
We are committed to tackling knife crime and we will discuss proposals to do this with all relevant Government Departments.
Managed Migration Directorate
Mr. Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria caseworkers at the Managed Migration Directorate were instructed to consider when determining applications for the right of establishment in business under EU association agreements from (a) 1 June 2003 until August 2003, (b) August 2003 to February 2004 and (c) February 2004 until 30 April 2004. [207535]
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Mr. Browne: The information is as follows.
(a) Applicants for the right of establishment in business under EC Association Agreements(ECAA) in the period 1 June 2003 until August 2003 were required to satisfy the following basic criteria:
that if they were switching from another immigration category they had valid leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom or applied no longer than 10 days after the expiry of that leave
that they provided a declaration indicating that they were going to be self-employed and would not resort to claiming public funds.
(b) In the period August 2003 until February 2004 caseworkers were subsequently instructed that applicants from the relevant qualifying countries who produced a passport with valid leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom and a business plan would be granted 12 months leave. This was subject to there being no other concerns about the application.
(c) In the period 10 February 2004 until 8 March 2004 caseworkers were instructed as far as switching cases were concerned, with the exception of illegal entrants and those who had overstayed their leave by more than 10 days, to grant applicants 12 months leave to remain. Those seeking further leave to remain provided they had not overstayed their original period of leave by six months were granted a further three years leave to remain.
Motoring Offences
Mr. Amess:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many prosecutions for (a) driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle with excess alcohol and (b) being in charge of a motor vehicle with excess alcohol (i) Essex police and (ii)Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997; [209803]
26 Jan 2005 : Column 388W
(2) how many prosecutions for (a) driving or attempting to drive a mechanically propelled vehicle while unfit through drink or drugs and (b) being in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle while unfit through drink or drugs (i) Essex police and (ii)Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997; [209804]
(3) how many prosecutions for motor manslaughter offences (a) Essex police and (b) Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997; [209805]
(4) how many prosecutions for (a) dangerous driving and (b) careless or inconsiderate driving (i)Essex police and (ii) Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997; [209807]
(5) how many prosecutions for driving with uncorrected sight (a) Essex police and (b) Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997; [209809]
(6) how many prosecutions for (a) causing death by dangerous driving and (b) causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs (i)Essex police and (ii) Southend police have brought successfully in each year since 1997. [209839]
Caroline Flint: Available information taken from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database for Essex police force area and South East Essex petty sessional area, 1997 to 2002 (latest available) are given in the Tables.
Offences of manslaughter by driving" cannot be identified separately from total manslaughter offences. And offences of driving with uncorrected sight" cannot be separately identified from other summary driving licence offences.
2003 data will be available in March 2005.
(69)Covers offences under legislation pertaining to the involvement of a motor vehicle (i.e. mechanically propelled vehicle intended or adapted for use on roads, and includes motor cycles, motor scooters, mechanically propelled invalid carriages, road rollers and tractors).
(70)Covers Southend and includes parts of Rayleigh, Benfleet and Canvey.
(71)Includes findings of guilt for south east Essex PSA and findings of guilt at Southend Crown court.
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