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11 Jul 2005 : Column 780W—continued
Nazi War Criminals
Mr. Dismore:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department's information held on alleged Nazi war criminals includes information on any persons who were formerly detained
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in the category known as black prisoners of war during the second world war; and if he will make a statement. [2680]
Fiona Mactaggart: Information of this nature is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Police
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) cars, (b) vans, (c) trucks, (d) motor cycles, (e) push bicycles and (f) horses are operated by Lancashire police. [11070]
Hazel Blears: The chief constable is responsible for the operational management of the force. I will ensure that he receives a copy of the question and replies to my hon. Friend directly in response to my hon. Friend's concerns.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will meet a cross-party delegation from Northamptonshire, including hon. Members, to discuss funding for the county police force. [8415]
Hazel Blears: We have invested strongly in local policing in Northamptonshire. This investment has delivered record police officer numbers and police support staff and an increasing number of community support officers.
Northamptonshire Police Authority received an excellent funding settlement this year. It is receiving £67.8 million in general police grants for 2005–06, an increase of £3.5 million or 5.5 per cent. over last year, significantly higher than the minimum increase of 3.75 per cent. guaranteed to all police authorities. It also receives around £6.9 million in specific grants for targeted programmes.
The police funding formula is currently being reviewed to ensure it continues to reflect fairly the relative financial pressures on each police authority. We expect a 12 week consultation period on options for formula change to begin in late July with the aim of introducing a revised formula in 2006–07. The consultation will provide an opportunity for all interested parties to comment on a range of proposals.
Grant floors will continue to remain an integral part of the finance system to provide a financially stable system for all police authorities.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to remove the floor damping scheme for police authority grant funding for 2006–07 and beyond. [11195]
Hazel Blears:
Grant damping provisions to provide a financially stable system for all police authorities will continue to remain an integral part of the grant system in 2006–07. The general grant floor of 3.75 per cent. this year guaranteed a minimum increase for all police authorities, well above both police pay and inflationary pressures. Northamptonshire Police Authority received an increase above the floor, at 5.5 per cent.
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Pre-sentence Reports
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department has issued to the Probation Service on the preparation of pre-sentence reports. [8379]
Fiona Mactaggart: Minimum standards for the preparation of pre-sentence reports are outlined in the National Probation Service National Standards. Supplementing the National Standards, detailed guidance has been issued to the Probation Service through a Probation Circular. Both these documents were published in March 2005.
Prisoners (Deportation)
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners in London are held awaiting deportation having completed their sentences. [8273]
Fiona Mactaggart: Information on the number of people who were detained in prison establishments awaiting deportation after completing their sentence is not available.
Work is ongoing to improve the quality of the data held on those people detained under the Immigration Act powers in prison establishments.
Prisons
Dr. Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison staff were diagnosed as suffering from tuberculosis in the last year for which figures are available; and how many staff died from the disease. [1827]
Fiona Mactaggart: In the last year one member of staff contracted tuberculosis from which he later died. Tests have confirmed that he did not contract the disease from within the Prison Service.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he has taken following the recommendation in 2004 of HM Inspectorate of Prisons that the female centre at HMP Durham be closed down; and if he will make a statement. [8055]
Fiona Mactaggart: An announcement was made on 26 May 2004 that the women's unit at HMP Durham was to close.
By October 2004, 97 female prisoners previously held at HMP Durham were interviewed by the Women's Estate Management Team and relocated in a phased process to an area appropriate to their security status and resettlement needs, or were released at the end of their sentence. Only six female prisoners remain there, of whom five are Restricted Status.
A discrete unit within Durham was converted to accommodate these women, who will remain there while alternative facilities are being developed at another establishment. The former women's unit has now been adapted to accommodate male prisoners.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many places there were in prisons in London in each of the last five years. [8393]
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Fiona Mactaggart: The information requested is provided in the table.
| Total operational capacity | |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 6,592 |
| 2001 | 6,657 |
| 2002 | 6,859 |
| 2003 | 7,023 |
| 2004 | 7,108 |
| 2005 | 7,463 |
Note:
Operational capacity has been used to represent the number of places. It is defined as the total number of prisoners that an establishment can hold without serious risk to good order, security, and the proper running of the planned regime.
Probation Service
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken in the last two financial years to improve the health and safety of staff at probation hostels in England and Wales. [6098]
Fiona Mactaggart: The Revitalising Health and Safety Strategy" was launched by the Director General of Probation in March 2003. This followed a national audit on the levels of compliance with health and safety legislation in the 42 probation areas. This strategy has improved health and safety in probation hostels by introducing a national accident/incident recording system, by the prioritisation of the identification of asbestos and providing risk assessments with management guidance and best practice.
The National Probation Service has also been working in partnership with the Health and Safety Executive, Probation Boards Association and trade unions in order to develop and implement a first class health and safety management system.
Religious Premises (Vandalism)
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many acts of vandalism on (a) synagogues, (b) mosques, (c) churches, (d) temples and (e) Gurdwaras were reported in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [8064]
Hazel Blears: The information requested is not available. Apart from criminal damage to a dwelling, the recorded crime statistics do not separately identify the location of acts of vandalism.
School-age Children (Protection from Crime)
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to ensure that children who are taken out of schools do not become victims of crime; and if he will make a statement. [9365]
Hazel Blears:
Where there are concerns about children removed from schools these will normally be pursued through the local education authority. In some cases these concerns will be sufficient to warrant police
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involvement. For example, the Metropolitan police investigation into the 'Adam' case found that a number of African boys were missing from education. However, police inquiries in conjunction with Education Welfare Officers established that there was no evidence to suggest these children had come to any harm.
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