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28 Jun 2005 : Column 1450W—continued

CCTV Cameras

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many CCTV cameras are currently operated by police in England and Wales. [4608]

Hazel Blears: CCTV cameras in England and Wales are operated by a wide variety of organisations including the police, as well as local authorities, the retail sector and train operating companies. Information on the number of cameras operated by the police is not held centrally.

Criminal Assets

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much each police force recovered from the proceeds of crime in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [5793]

Hazel Blears: Police force performance on recovering the proceeds of crime is measured by the value of cash forfeitures and confiscation orders obtained by a force. The value of orders obtained by each police force in 2004–05 is shown in the table.
Police forceTotal value of cash forfeitures and confiscation orders obtained by the police service in 2004–05
Metropolitan Police Service26,426,648.39
National Crime Squad11,940,373.79
Lancashire Constabulary3,743,146.94
Greater Manchester Police3,453,431.70
Merseyside Police2,908,711.21
Cambridgeshire Constabulary2,695,434.41
Derbyshire Constabulary2,540,453.70
West Yorkshire Police2,265,457.57
City of London Police2,211,123.08
West Midlands Police2,053,433.63
Avon and Somerset Constabulary1,959,930.23
Kent Police1,926,936.62
Police Service of Northern Ireland1,769,094.32
Nottinghamshire Police1,336,612.41
South Yorkshire Police1,330,077.48
Devon and Cornwall Constabulary1,182,881.95
Cumbria Constabulary1,124,156.05
Northamptonshire Police1,063,417.47
Dorset Police1,050,401.06
Sussex Police1,002,181.72
West Mercia Constabulary999,467.06
Norfolk Constabulary911,868.06
Northumbria Police909,645.62
Leicestershire Constabulary891,588.29
Thames Valley Police750,663.61
Surrey Police648,947.84
Cheshire Constabulary541,557.19
Wiltshire Constabulary482,559.71
Durham Constabulary477,399.45
Gwent Police442,673.90
Hertfordshire Constabulary440,353.93
Suffolk Constabulary430,715.69
South Wales Police400,577.52
Gloucestershire Constabulary390,468.23
Hampshire Constabulary333,792.86
Lincolnshire Police307,912.23
British Transport Police281,376.94
Staffordshire Police260,405.82
Humberside Police255,656.67
Cleveland Police230,220.07
North Yorkshire Police205,081.94
Dyfed-Powys Police201,061.20
Essex Police192,804.57
Bedfordshire Police154,828.69
North Wales Police109,758.12
Warwickshire Police57,357.29

 
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Criminal Records Bureau

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the progress of implementing the Basic Disclosure by the Criminal Records Bureau and if he will bring forward legislation to activate the offence of Enforced Subject Access under Section 56 of the Data Protection Act 1998. [4576]

Andy Burnham: The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) will undertake a feasibility study into the launch of a Basic Disclosure service during the current financial year. The offence of Enforced Subject Access under Section 56 of the Data Protection Act will be commenced in England and Wales at such time as the CRB is providing a Basic Disclosure service.

Identity Cards

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the robustness of available technology to meet the requirements of the proposed identity card scheme. [6162]

Andy Burnham: Given constant advancement of biometric technology and the need to conduct a fair and thorough procurement process, rather than focus on the technology available at the present time, much of which may be superseded by the time cards are first issued, we are working with other Departments and with expert advisers to set the requirements for performance of future technology. However, naturally, this work has included a review of baseline technologies available now. In particular this has included: a review of the technology used elsewhere in government; engagement with other governments with experience in the field (e.g.US, Hong Kong, Philippines, UAE); in depth review of current and emerging scientific evidence in the field; engagement with independent experts in the field (e.g. Communications-Electronic Security Group, National Physical Laboratory, San Jose University, National Institute of Standards and Technology, PA consulting).

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has collated on which other countries have an identity card scheme; and when each scheme was introduced. [6163]

Andy Burnham: Information collated by the Home Office on other countries with an identity card scheme, which includes some introduction dates, is available in the publication Entitlement Cards and Identity Fraud—A Consultation Paper [CM 5557]

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many digits he expects to be printed on identity cards; and what information he has collated on the number of digits required on passports and identity cards by other countries. [6164]


 
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Andy Burnham: No fingerprints will be printed on the face of the identity card. Biometric information, including under current plans 10 fingerprints, will be held securely on the National Identity Register. Some of the fingerprint data could be held in an encrypted form on the card chip. All the Schengen states will be required to use biometrics in passports under Council Regulation 2252/2004. Fingerprint biometrics (rather than just fingerprints) will be introduced within three years of adoption. Non-Schengen states may choose to follow the requirements, although they would not be bound by the timetable. Other EU member states which issue identity cards are considering introducing biometrics to increase security and some, for example Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain, already collect one or more fingerprints as part of their national identity card schemes. Among non-EU states, Hong Kong and the Philippines currently include fingerprint information on their identity card schemes.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the assumption in CM 6020 that once the validity period expires, an automatic replacement identity card would be provided free of charge, remains the Government's policy. [6179]

Andy Burnham: No such assumption was made in CM 6020 on 12 November 2003 and decisions have yet to be taken about the detailed fee structure for ID cards.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2005, Official Report, columns 320–21W, on on-line identity verification, whether the costs of infrastructure additional to the parts of the central IT infrastructure which will support identity verification services is included in the £584 million figure. [6201]

Andy Burnham: The current best estimate of the total average annual running costs for issuing passports and ID cards to UK nationals and running a verification service is £584 million at 2005–06 prices and has been published in the Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA). This includes the cost of operating and maintaining the verification services. As outlined in the RIA user organisations will be expected to cover the cost of biometric readers.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2005, Official Report, columns 157–58W, on identity cards, (1) if he will disaggregate the total average annual running costs for issuing passports and identity cards to show the estimated costs for (a) online verification to validate identity cards and other identity enquiries from user organisations, (b) operating and maintaining (i)those parts of the central IT infrastructure that will support identity verification services and (ii) additional central infrastructure and (c) recording and matching face, fingerprint and iris biometric information; [6202]

(2) what his estimate is of the cost of (a) introducing and (b) maintaining a database containing (i) facial biometrics and (ii) facial, iris and fingerprint biometrics in combination for the population of the UK who are 16years and over. [6377]


 
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Andy Burnham: It would not be appropriate to release this information in advance of procurement as this may put at risk the Department's ability to secure value for money.

Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information will be held on the national identity card register to establish a person's entitlement to free NHS treatment. [6733]

Mr. McNulty: The information to be kept on the National Identity Register is set out in Schedule 1 of the Identity Cards Bill. Entitlement to free treatment is not included in the Schedule, neither is it a registrable fact as defined in Clause 1(5) of the Identity Cards Bill. This means that such information could not be held on the National Identity Register unless approved by further primary legislation. However, information contained on the National Identity Register, for example about a person's immigration status, could be relevant to decisions on whether an individual is entitled to free NHS treatment.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with which commercial companies his Department has held discussions about the proposed identity card scheme. [4606]

Andy Burnham: The Identity Cards programme is currently in the pre-procurement development" phase. In conducting its activities, discussions have taken place with a range of commercial organisations. These discussions have, to date, focused on technical feasibility, benefits case development and general communications with the market as part of the early market engagement" recommended by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) as best practice in public sector procurements. The ultimate aim of conducting these discussions is to ensure that an appropriate and effective procurement strategy is developed resulting in a competitive procurement and successful implementation.

Mr. Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to issue identity cards to newly arrived asylum seekers. [4146]

Mr. McNulty: There are no plans to issue newly arrived asylum seekers with Identity Cards as it is difficult to check the biographical footprint of asylum seekers as they arrive in the UK without any documents to confirm their identity. Asylum seekers are issued with biometric Asylum Registration Cards (ARC) which contains a fingerprint of the individual that it has been issued to. The biometric ARC card is used to prevent an individual lodging multiple applications for asylum. Clause 2(4) of the Identity Cards Bill allows an entry for an individual to be made in the Register (whether or not he has applied to be, or is entitled to be entered in it) if the Secretary of State considers that the addition of the entry to the Register would be consistent with the statutory purposes. This clause will allow a failed asylum seeker to be entered into the Register to ensure that they cannot assume a different identity while they remain in the UK or if they make a subsequent attempt
 
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to enter the UK. An asylum seeker who is granted leave to remain will be entitled to be registered on the ID cards scheme.

Mr. Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms will be put in place to ensure the security of the National Identity Register. [4171]

Andy Burnham: In the interests of maintaining the security of the National Identity Register, it is not possible to reveal any proposed security mechanisms for the Scheme. However, the National Identity Register will be a highly secure system, and will be formally Security Accredited in accordance with Government policy. The policy can be found at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/cisa/publications/index.asp. The National Identity Register will also comply with the Data Protection Act and other relevant legislation.

The programme is working with acknowledged security specialists, Communication Electronic Security Group, National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre and other organisations to ensure appropriate measures are in place to maintain a secure and resilient system.

The Identity Cards Bill includes a clause which makes it a criminal offence to disclose information without lawful authority. This includes information relating to the Register, the issuing of ID Cards or the functions of the National Identity Scheme Commissioner. This is set out in clause 29 of the Bill. A person found guilty of an offence under this section is liable for up to two years imprisonment. A separate offence of tampering with the Register attracts a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment.

Ms Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Department will take to ensure that identity cards will not be required to be produced by those subject to stop and search, with particular reference to stop and search of black and ethnic minority individuals. [4406]

Andy Burnham: There will be no requirement to carry an ID card at all times, this is specifically prohibited in the Identity Cards Bill, in addition police officers do not have a power under the Bill to stop someone and demand to see an identity card although there is nothing to prevent an individual choosing to provide an identity card voluntarily.

Ms Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contingency plans the Department is making in the event that the identity card technology goes wrong. [4409]

Andy Burnham: We are planning for the scheme to comply with industry best practice business continuity and disaster recovery processes to ensure that the core business is able to function in the event of a major disruption or loss of technical infrastructure

Ms Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment the Department has made of the extent to which the introduction of identity cards will eliminate identity theft perpetrated over the telephone. [4412]


 
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Andy Burnham: The Identity Cards Programme team is working closely with experts in the field of remote authentication (i.e. verifying people's identities when using the internet, telephone and post) in order to establish a more secure method of verifying an identity than currently possible.

Reference research has shown that use of the ID card with certain processes will permit an improvement in the level of assurance possible via remote authentication.

This research to date has focused on the concept of a challenge response" process, which allows for the generation of a one-off password for a person to use for an individual transaction. Due to the one-time nature of the response generated, anyone trying to impersonate another individual to obtain information about others for criminal purpose or to perpetrate fraud will be greatly hindered.

Specific details regarding the research cannot be made public due to issues of commercial sensitivity prior to procurement.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he expects information held on individuals under the proposals in the Identity Cards Bill to be shared with (a) international agencies and (b) other governments. [6778]

Andy Burnham [holding answer 23 June 2005]: The Identity Cards Bill does not allow for information in the National Identity Register to be provided without the consent of the individual other than in the specific circumstances outlined as follows.

There are very strictly limited circumstances, outlined in Clause 20(2) of the Identity Cards Bill, when information could be provided without consent for any of the purposes specified in sections 17(2)(a) to (d) of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. This would allow for the disclosure of information for the purposes of prevention and detection of crime overseas. This may involve the provision of information to international agencies or other governments.

However, provision of this information can only be made subject to the rules laid out in Clause 23 of the Identity Cards Bill. In addition, under Clause 20(3), the Secretary of State can prohibit the provision of information without consent for use in overseas proceedings, under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001, as specified in section 18 of that Act. For example the Secretary of State might do this if he considered that it would be more appropriate for these proceedings to be conducted in a court of the United Kingdom.

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he expects biometric details of victims of (a) domestic violence, (b) rape and (c) sexual abuse would be removed from the National Identity Register to protect the individual. [6787]

Andy Burnham [holding answer 23 June 2005]: Removing the biometrics of these victims would not add any additional protection to the individual. Thus, biometrics would not be removed from the National Identity Register—they are necessary to ensure that a person does not attempt to enrol into the Scheme more than once. However, we recognise the importance of
 
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security of personal details to vulnerable members of society. Our processes are being designed to ensure this is maintained.

For example, once enrolled, biometrics are used for two purposes: (1) to verify that a person is the authentic card holder, and (2) to authorise release of information during a verification check. In each of these instances, there would be security measures in place to ensure that person conducting the transaction is the actual cardholder and is providing their own biometric. A release of information in the second instance can usually only happen with consent of the individual involved.

In cases where information is provided without consent those requesting information are strictly limited and traceable.

Those responsible for administering the scheme including administration staff will not themselves be authorised to perform a search for a cardholder's individual records. As the National Identity Register will be held at a high protective marking, only security cleared staff will have access to the National Identity Register. The independent oversight and auditing of working processes in data centres would detect any such search in real-time and identify those responsible. Clause 29 of the Identity Cards Bill makes it a criminal offence, subject to imprisonment for up to two years and/or a fine, for any person to provide without lawful authority, information from the scheme to a third party.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2005, Official Report, columns 157–58W on identity cards, if he will disaggregate the total average annual running costs for supporting users of the on-line verification service via a helpdesk. [7227]

Andy Burnham: It would not be appropriate to release this information in advance of procurement as this may put at risk the Department's ability to secure value for money.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what components are included by the current best estimate of £93 for the unit cost of an adult passport and identity card given in paragraph 22 of the Identity Cards Bill Regulatory Impact Assessment. [7228]

Andy Burnham: The estimate of £93 includes all the operational costs for issuing Identity Cards and passports to UK nationals for the 10 year validity period. It excludes the costs of the verification service and equipment, such as card readers, required by user organisations. It includes allowance for contingency, optimism bias and non-recoverable VAT.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the set-up costs that will be incurred after the first identity cards and biometric passports are issued as referred to in paragraph 19 of the Regulatory Impact Assessment on the Identity Cards Bill. [7229]

Andy Burnham: It would not be appropriate to release this information in advance of procurement as it is commercially sensitive. The identity cards programme is in the pre-procurement phase, during procurement this information could be used by suppliers to estimate what
 
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we expect to pay for the contracts they are bidding for. This would prejudice the Department's ability to secure value for money solutions from the market.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on how married people who wish to use both their pre-marriage and post-marriage name will be dealt with under the proposed identity card scheme; and whether it will be possible for them to have two cards. [7230]

Andy Burnham: Final decisions have not yet been taken regarding the name policy for the Identity Cards scheme. However, we are aware of the needs of those who use both their pre-marriage and post-marriage names. The Identity Cards Bill allows for a person to include other names by which they are Known" on the National Identity Register and we are looking at various solutions on how to represent this on the card for UK citizens. We continue to investigate how both names could be used for verification purposes. Current work indicates that it should not be necessary to provide two cards to enable married people to use both their pre-marriage and post-marriage names. In the case of foreign nationals, their name on the card will be required to match what is on their passport for immigration purposes.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether a decision has been made on the (a) number and (b) location of centres where biometric information may be collected. [7231]

Andy Burnham: We are currently planning a network of enrolment centres where applicants to the ID cards scheme will have a biometrics recorded and a short meeting with a member of the new agency's staff. Work on defining the number and location of centres is not yet complete. On 21 December 2004, Official Report, column 171WS, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Mr.Browne) provided a written statement to the House announcing some 70" new offices being required for the first phase of the UKPS Authentication by Interview (ABI) project, while this forms part of the building blocks towards the identity cards programme these offices do not necessarily form part of the enrolment centre provision. The identity cards programme enrolment network is being designed to enable people to obtain a card with minimum inconvenience. The number and location of centres is being developed based on: Convenience for applicant, considering travel distance and time, travel to work areas, public transport availability and patterns: Minimum workable size of centre, considering staffing issues, security and avoiding collusion: Overall cost of the enrolment centre network. In addition to the enrolment centres the identity cards programme enrolment plans also include the use of mobile facilities, although at this stage it is not yet known how many of these facilities there will be.

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what failure rate in recognising biometric data in the proposed identity cards would be considered acceptable. [3174]

Mr. McNulty: The level of acceptability in relation to biometric check failure rates is a balance between biometric performance and system cost. The exact level
 
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is still being determined through stakeholder consultation. Current thinking is that several biometric readings will be recorded, i.e. fingerprint, iris image and facial recognition, which would increase the accuracy of any biometric checks.


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