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10 Feb 2005 : Column 1730W—continued
TV Licences
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many students who live in shared accommodation paid the television licence fee in the 2003–04 financial year. [213992]
Estelle Morris [holding answer 4 February 2005]: The information requested is not available. The BBC have indicated that the records held by TV Licensing do not include comprehensive data on licences purchased by students, nor do they distinguish between addresses in single and those in multiple occupation.
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many undergraduate students in the UK paid the television licence fee in the 2003–04 financial year and how much revenue was raised thereby. [213993]
Estelle Morris
[holding answer 4 February 2005]: The information requested is not available. The BBC have indicated that the records held by TV Licensing do not include comprehensive data on licences purchased by students, nor do they distinguish between graduates and undergraduates.
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HOME DEPARTMENT
Antisocial Behaviour (Lancashire)
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on tackling anti-social behaviour in Lancashire. [215326]
Ms Blears: The Government's TOGETHER campaign helps local people and agencies to tackle and not tolerate antisocial behaviour. TOGETHER applies across all England and Wales including the hon. Members constituency.
Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs) across Lancashire have employed antisocial behaviour co-ordinators and solicitors to improve the response to antisocial behaviour. CDRPS have also undertaken environmental clean ups and are delivering diversionary activities such as youth shelters and teen meets.
Lancashire has been at the forefront in the use of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) and ABCs. Lancashire was among the first areas in the country to obtain interim ASBOs. 114 ASBOs have been issued in Lancashire since April 1999.
As part of TOGETHER, with our partner Groundwork UK, we have introduced Operation Gate It—a specific fund for environmental solutions to problems of antisocial behaviour. In 2003, we funded pilot Gate-It schemes in Blackburn, Bury, Bootle and Ormskirk. In June 2004, we announced further Gate It Schemes in Blackpool and Wigan. This year's award winners will be announced in shortly.
Blackburn has been chosen as a TOGETHER action area, which will pilot new approaches and become an example of best practice in tackling antisocial behaviour. Blackburn will also look to develop new ways of involving members of the public in the drive to tackle antisocial behaviour.
Demoted Tenancies
Mr. Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many tenancies have been downgraded under the provisions of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 in (a) Birmingham, (b) Bristol, (c) Leeds, (d) Liverpool, (e) Manchester, (f) Newcastle, (g) Nottingham and (h) Sheffield. [214039]
Keith Hill:
I have been asked to reply.
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The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not currently request that local authorities supply information on numbers of demoted tenancies. We are working to ensure that this information is supplied from 2005–06 onwards.
The Housing Corporation are collecting this information from registered social landlords as part of the Regulatory and Statistical Returns for 2005–06. This data is expected to be published in August 06.
Anti-terrorism Measures
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information the Government have published for (a) the general public and (b) small businesses on terrorist alertness and prevention. [215350]
Mr. Charles Clarke: For the public the Government have published information on how they can protect themselves and their families; what to do in an emergency; how they can help prevent terrorism by being alert and reporting anything suspicious to thePolice Anti-Terrorism Hotline (0800 789 321). Thisinformation can be found in the Preparing for Emergencies booklet and on the website www.preparingforemergencies.gov.uk and information on threat and what the Government are doing to combat terrorism can be found on the Home Office website www.homeoffice.gov.uk/terrorism.
Government advice to businesses on prevention and being alert to terrorism applies to businesses generally. The information we have published includes information on protective security from basic practical steps to technological solutions such as CCTV and protecting IT networks; information on what to do with suspicious packages; and how businesses can plan to make sure they can recover from the consequences of emergencies, whatever the cause. This information can be found on the Security Service website www.mi5.gov.uk and a range of publications to aid businesses in continuity planning are available on www.UKResilience.gov.uk.
Asylum and Immigration
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total Government spending on asylum and immigration was in each year from 1997–98 to 2003–04; what the planned expenditure is for each year from 2004–05 to 2007–08; and if he will make a statement. [211479]
Mr. Browne: This information is not available in the format requested but Immigration and Nationality Directorate expenditure and asylum support costs for the years 1997–98 to 2003–04 are set out in the table as follows. Asylum support costs were borne by other government departments up to and including 1999–2000.
(20) Because of a change in the basis of government accounting in 2000–01, from cash to resource (accruals), it is not possible to compare directly figures from 1999–2000 to 2000–01 onwards.
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IND allocations for 2004–05 and 2005–06 are as follows:
| 2004–05 | 2005–06 | |
|---|---|---|
| Resource | 1,656 | 1,519 |
| Capital | 130 | 111 |
Budgets for 2006–07 and 2007–08 have not yet been finalised.
These figures exclude allocations to the Department for Constitutional Affairs from the single asylum budget.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what means were used to inform (a) the public and (b) interested bodies of the 31 December deadline for applications for special consideration by pre-2000 applicants for asylum. [210738]
Mr. Browne: I wrote to right hon. and hon. Members on 19 August. Home Office officials wrote to the main non-governmental organisations working with or on behalf of asylum seekers. The correspondence drew attention to the 31 December closing date for receipt of applications under the Families ILR exercise. As a result we have received large numbers of applications.
Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Zimbabwean asylum seekers have had their applications declined and been repatriated in each month since January 2002. [210777]
Mr. Browne: We have taken repatriation here to mean removal. The number of Zimbabwean nationals who had claimed asylum at some stage and have been removed from the United Kingdom between January 2002 and September 2004 is given in the table. This information includes persons who departed under assisted voluntary return schemes run by the International Organization for Migration and those who departed voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated.
It is not possible to say at what stage in the asylum process people are at the time of their removal.
National Statistics on the number and nationality of asylum applicants removed from the UK during the final quarter of 2004 will be published on the Home Office website, www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html, on 22 February 2005.
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(21) Includes persons departing voluntarily" after enforcement action had been initiated against them, persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration, and removals on safe third country grounds.
(22) Figures rounded to the nearest five and may not sum due to rounding.
(23) Figures may include a small number of dependants leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes.
(24) Figures exclude dependants of asylum seekers removed. Data on dependants removed have only been collected since April 2001.
(25) Data have been estimated due to data quality issues.
(26) Provisional figures.
(27) Data for October to December 2004 will be published in February 2005.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to ensure that asylum seekers can undertake voluntary work. [213857]
Mr. Browne: Asylum seekers are permitted to undertake unpaid voluntary work and the Government would encourage them to do so wherever possible. It supports a number of relevant schemes from its Purposeful Activities for Asylum Seekers Fund.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision has been made to provide asylum seekers, including end of process asylum seekers, from those countries affected by the tsunami (a) with temporary, humanitarian or discretionary protection in the UK and (b) permission to work until they can reasonably go home. [214986]
Mr. Browne:
The suspension of enforced returns to areas directly affected by the tsunami is temporary and we have no plans to grant leave or permission to work to failed asylum seekers from those areas. Individuals from the directly affected areas will normally be eligible for section 4 (hard case) support while the temporary pension remains in place. Asylum applications made by individuals from areas affected by the tsunami will be considered in accordance with normal policy and procedures.
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Mr. Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum-seekers are located in the Easington constituency. [215517]
Mr. Browne: Statistics on the location of asylum seekers in the UK are linked to the available information on the support that the asylum seeker receives.
At the end of September 2004 there were no asylum seekers in the Easington constituency recorded as in receipt of National Asylum Support Service (NASS) support.
Corresponding figures for those not in receipt of NASS support are not available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Numbers of asylum seekers placed in NASS accommodation and numbers who are in receipt of subsistence only support from NASS, are published on a quarterly and annual basis. The next publication covering the fourth quarter of 2004 (October to December) will be available on 22 February 2005 on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.
Mr. John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made with the application for indefinite leave to remain lodged in April 2004 by Mr. Hameed Al Haddad of Solihull (Home Office ref. H1021433). [209874]
Mr. Browne [holding answer 20 January 2005]: Following Mr. Hameed Al Haddad's application dated 2 April 2004 a decision has been taken to grant Mr. Hameed Al Haddad indefinite leave to remain. A letter informing Mr. Hameed Al Haddad of this decision was sent to his representatives, Harbans Singh & Co. by recorded delivery on 18 January 2005. The recorded delivery number is DT280841458GB.
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