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16 Mar 2005 : Column 320W—continued
Police
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the change in the rate of stop and searches of people of Asian origin since 2001. [218617]
Ms Blears:
For the period 2001–02 to 2003–04 the year on year change in the rate of people of Asian origin stopped and searched in England and Wales per 1,000 population aged 10 and over is as follows.
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| 2001–02 to 2002–03 | 2002–03 to 2003–04 | |
|---|---|---|
| Section 1 PACE 1984 | +35.2 | -8.6 |
| Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 | +60.0 | -18.6 |
| Section 44 Terrorism Act 2000 | +366.7 | +21.4 |
Source:
Research, Development and Statistics—Office for Criminal Justice Reform
The Government are committed to reducing disproportionality and increasing the confidence that the black and minority ethnic community has in the way the police use stop and search. In order to benefit as much as possible from the input of communities an independent Community Panel chaired by Lord Victor Adebowale was established in December 2004. The Community Panel provides advice to SSAT and the Delivery Board on the race and community impact of their work programme, and also acts as a scrutiny for their work.
Police (Child Abuse)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the Government will enforce the Association of Chief Police Officers' guidance on anonymity for individuals accused of child abuse by the media. [219315]
Ms Blears: The Association of Chief Police Officers has issued revised guidance to all police forces making it absolutely clear that anyone under investigation but not charged should not be named, and no details should be provided to the press that might lead to their identification before they are charged. This applies to all offences, not just sexual abuse. It would be a serious disciplinary matter if any police officers were to transgress that guidance.
The Press Complaints Commission also has safeguards in place against the publication of inaccurate or misleading information. The Press Complaints Commission guidance is enforced through complaints to the Commission about press reporting that breaches the Code. The Interdepartmental Ministerial Group on Sexual Offending will examine the impact of the revised guidance after May 2005, when the Sexual Offences Act 2003 will have been in operation for 12 months.
Police Community Consultative Group
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost in (a) Essex and (b) Southend is of police (i) attendance and (ii) administration of police/community forums in each year since 1997. [220557]
Ms Blears:
The Chief Constable of Essex police informs me that the cost of running Police Community Consultative Group (PCCG) meetings in Essex since 1997 is as set out in the table.
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| (£) | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 18,100 |
| 1998–99 | 18,600 |
| 1999–2000 | 18,800 |
| 2000–01 | 19,900 |
| 2001–02 | 21,000 |
| 2002–03 | 21,100 |
| 2003–04 | 22,200 |
| 2004–05 | 21,700 |
These figures relate to expenditure for room hire and salaries for relevant administrative staff. Records are not kept of the costs of operational officers and staff attending PCCG meetings as part of their normal duties.
Costs are not available at Basic Command Unit level.
Police (Kent)
Dr. Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police officers and (b) police community support officers were employed in the North Kent Division of Kent Police in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [221099]
Ms Blears: Information on strength at Basic Command Unit (BCU) level is collected annually and reflects the position at the end of March for each year. Information on BCU strength is only available from 2002 and is set out in the table. The deployment of officers to BCUs is a matter for the Chief Constable (Mr. Michael Fuller) and within the North Kent Division deployment of officers is a matter for the Divisional Commander.
Information on the number of community support officers (CSOs) has been provided by the chief constable. The first CSOs were deployed to North Kent in 2002–03. The information provided for CSOs is also set out in the following table.
| As at 31 March | Number of police officers(42) | Number of community support officers |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 342 | Not applicable |
| 2003 | 363 | 2 |
| 2004 | 399 | 8 |
| 2005 | Not available | 17 |
Source:
(42) Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate for 2003 onwards. March 2002 data was collected by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary.
The number of police officers deployed to the North Kent division has increased by 57 officers, or by nearly 17 per cent., since March 2002. The increase in the number of police officers for North Kent has significantly exceeded the overall increase in police officer numbers for the Kent police of 7 per cent. for the same period (March 2002 to March 2004).
Police Finance
Mr. Willis:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total amount held for each police authority in England in reserves or balances for
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(a) capital and (b) revenue was in (i) 2001–02, (ii) 2002–03 and (iii) 2003–04; and what the figures were as a percentage of annual expenditure. [211450]
Ms Blears [holding answer 27 January 2005]: Available information on revenue reserves, which include balances, has been placed in the Library. Details of capital reserves could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to ensure the accuracy of data used in the calculation of grant entitlements for Derbyshire Police Authority for the financial year 2005–06. [213230]
Ms Blears: The data used in the calculation of grant entitlements come from a variety of different sources and the validation of data varies accordingly.
In many cases, data providers, such as the Office for National Statistics, will undertake validation. The Office for the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) checks data used in the calculation of grant entitlement as part of the wider local government finance settlement calculations by comparing supplied data year on year. Where appropriate, ODPM then queries any anomalies with the Department or body responsible for supplying the data.
All data used is provided as part of the local government finance consultation.
Police Funding
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the level of police funding per head of population has been for (a) Greater Manchester and (b) Dorset in each year from 1998–99. [205408]
Ms Blears: I refer the right hon. Member to the reply I gave on 28 February 2005, Official Report, column 1008W, to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman).
Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which police forces in England and Wales are receiving funding (a) above the formula funding level, (b) at the formula funding level and (c) below the formula funding level; and what action he is taking to ensure that all forces receive funding in line with the formula. [220396]
Ms Blears [holding answer 7 March 2005]: Government funding for police authorities is chiefly allocated using a funding formula that distributes resources on the basis of relative need and resources. A damping mechanism subsequently applied to protect all authorities against financial instability ensures all authorities receive an increase in grant at least equal to the "floor" level on a like-for-like basis year-on-year. Grant floors are an integral part of the finance system.
In 2005–06, every police authority will receive the amount of grant to which it is entitled under "The Police Grant Report (England and Wales) 2005/06", "The Local Government Finance Report (England) 2005/06", and "The Local Government Finance Report No 2 2005/06" for Wales.
In 2004–05, all police authorities received a grant increase around 3.25 per cent. For 2005–06 it has been possible to reintroduce recognition of relative need, and
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grant increases range from the floor of 3.75 per cent. to 6.81 per cent. Grant provisions before and after damping are given in the following table.
We are currently reviewing the funding formulae and will be consulting local authorities during the summer of 2005 on the formulae for the 2006–07 settlement.
(43) Rounded to the nearest £100,000. Calculated using the Police Funding Formula 2005–06.
(44) Rounded to the nearest £100,000. Calculated under the Police Grant Report (England and Wales), the Local Government Finance Report (England) and The Local Government Finance Report No 2 for Wales. Figures include the effects of floor damping.
(45) Because the Welsh Assembly does not operate a grant damping mechanism ('funding floor and ceiling'), the Home Secretary has for several years provided additional funding to ensure Welsh police authorities receive at least a minimum increase in grant in line with English authorities. A total of £13.9 million will be allocated to Welsh police authorities in 2005–06 to bring their allocations in line with the grant floor level.
(46) Figures for the City of London Police are excluded because these are allocated to the Common Council of the City of London as a whole in respect of all its functions. The City is grouped with Education Authorities for grant damping purposes.
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