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14 Jul 2005 : Column 1207W—continued
Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he expects to reply to the letter to him dated 1 June from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr.Michael Addie. [10688]
Hilary Benn: The letter of 1 June from my right hon. Friend for Manchester, Gorton, on behalf of his constituent Mr. Michael Addie was received in DFID on 10 June. A reply was issued on 12 July. I apologise for the delay.
Cotton Subsidies
Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with the US Administration regarding the impact of cotton subsidies on African Caribbean Pacific countries. [9273]
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Mr. Thomas: The EU and US cotton subsidies are among the clearest examples of trade distortion by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The UK was among the EU member states who pushed hard for maximum reductions in EU trade distorting subsidies to cotton in the 2003 reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) both as an end in its self and to push the US to address their subsidies.
The West African countries most adversely affected by depressed world prices (with support from EU donors including the UK) have been successful in getting special attention paid to cotton in the context of the Doha Development Agenda and a special sub-group on cotton has been set up in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agriculture negotiations. Brazil also successfully challenged US cotton subsidies in the WTO, with the result that the US has to end some of its subsidies. We have pushed the US to comply with this ruling. DFID also provides support to International NGOs who work with developing countries in preparing for WTO agriculture negotiations, including on cotton.
Uganda
Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the level of UK development assistance to Uganda, in the event of a change to the Ugandan constitution to enable the President to serve a third term. [11828]
Hilary Benn: The UK has set aside £70 million of development assistance for Uganda in 2005–06. £50 million of this has been allocated for Poverty Reduction Budget Support (PRBS). Our PRBS agreement with the Government links disbursement to criteria on macro-economic and sector performance and governance. All the criteria that determine disbursement levels are taken from the commitments in the Government of Uganda's own Poverty Eradication Action Plan and are designed to ensure our support is transparent and predictable. We intend to take a decision on the level of disbursement in 2005–06 in September when we will assess performance against all the agreed indicators.
The issue of lifting the limit on presidential tenure, like other proposed changes to the constitution, is for Ugandans to decide. We trust the process for doing this will carry the confidence of the Ugandan people and Parliament. The governance criteria in our PRBS agreement are focused on the quality of the overall transition process leading up to elections in March 2006.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Abductions
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were prosecuted for abduction in London in each year since 1997. [8326]
Fiona Mactaggart:
Data from the Home Office Court Proceedings database on the number of people
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prosecuted for abduction in London, 1997 to 2003 is contained in the table.
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Statistics for 2004 court proceedings will be available in the autumn.
(8) These data are on the principal offence basis.
(9) Includes Metropolitan and City of London police force areas.
Acceptable Behaviour Contracts
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how evidence is tested prior to the drafting of an acceptable behaviour contract; [11375]
(2) what sanctions apply in respect of an acceptable behaviour contract if the conditions are breached. [11376]
(3) what rights the recipient of an acceptable behaviour contract has to challenge the evidence on which the contract was based. [11377]
Hazel Blears: An acceptable behaviour contract (ABC) is agreed and signed at a meeting with the individual involved in the antisocial behaviour and one or more lead agencies. This meeting should be used as an opportunity for the individual and his or her family (if the individual involved is a young person) to discuss the impact their behaviour has had on others. The meeting may also be used as an opportunity to challenge any evidence put forward in support of making the ABC. ABCs are not statutory orders and therefore it is for local authorities to decide details such as what evidence may be used to support an ABC and how this evidence is tested. Our publication A guide to antisocial behaviour orders and acceptable behaviour contracts" provides guidelines on ABCs for local authorities.
Breach of an ABC is not a criminal offence but should be taken seriously. The action taken is a matter for local authorities and should be determined by the nature of the breach.
Airwave
Mr. Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the (a) Airwave health monitoring study by Imperial College London and (b) the Airwave Patterns of Use Study by the University of Birmingham Institute of Occupational and Environmental Medicine have been published; and if he will place copies in the Library. [11583]
Hazel Blears: The Imperial College work is a long-term study. The results will not be available for several years. The University of Birmingham work has now been completed and the report will be published as soon as possible.
Alcohol-related Crime (Bedfordshire)
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many alcohol-related crimes there have been in (a) the constituency of Mid-Bedfordshire and (b) the county of Bedfordshire since 1997. [11024]
Hazel Blears: It is not possible to identify offences that are alcohol-related from the recorded crime data collected centrally.
Antisocial Behaviour Orders
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) whether any antisocial behaviour orders have been (a) applied for and (b) granted in respect of an individual who uses a wheelchair; [11359]
(2) how many antisocial behaviour orders have been issued with a condition since 1999; and what the most common conditions were; [11362]
(3) how many antisocial behaviour orders with (a) one condition, (b) two conditions, (c) three conditions, (d) five to 10 conditions, (e) more than 10 conditions and (f) 20 or more conditions were issued in each year since 1999. [11363]
Hazel Blears: Data collated by the Home Office for statistical purposes do not identify the personal circumstances of antisocial behaviour order (ASBO) recipients.
An ASBO prohibits a recipient from doing anything described in the order but the number or types of conditions imposed are not collated for statistical purposes.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what evidence his Department has evaluated on the effects of antisocial behaviour orders on individuals with a disability; [11360]
(2) what advice has been given to (a) courts, (b) the police and (c) local authorities on the effects of issuing an antisocial behaviour order to an individual with a disability. [11361]
Hazel Blears: Our publications A guide to anti-social behaviour orders and acceptable behaviour contracts" and Guidance on publicising antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs)" together with information provided by our TOGETHER website and Action Line, provides comprehensive guidance for all practitioners, including courts, police authorities and local authorities.
This guidance sets out that, where an individual has a known or suspected disability, a needs assessment should always be carried out. In addition, the courts and
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practitioners are familiar with disability discrimination legislation which provides a general safeguard when taking court action against an individual that has a disability.
We have not received any evidence to suggest that ASBOs may disproportionately affect individuals with a disability.
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders have been issued in (a) criminal and (b) civil courts in (i) England, (ii) the Teesside region and (iii) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency. [11367]
Hazel Blears: The available information is given in the table.
(10) The Teesside region includes Hartlepool, Redcar and Cleveland, Middlesbrough and Stockton on Tees local authority areas.
2 From 1 April 1999 to 31 May 2000 data were collected on aggregate numbers only by police force area (pfa). Includes one ASBO issued within Cleveland pfa during this period.
(11) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland parliamentary constituency is located within the local government authority areas of Middlesbrough borough council and Redcar and Cleveland council.
(12) Includes 104 ASBOs issued from 1 April 1999 to 31 May 2000.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether an individual's physical or mental condition which affects their ability to carry out normal day-to-day actions is taken into account by (a) courts, (b) local authorities and (c) the police when deciding whether to apply for an antisocial behaviour order; and whether any antisocial behaviour orders have been (i) applied for and (ii) granted in respect of individuals. [11379]
Hazel Blears: Our publications A guide to antisocial behaviour orders and acceptable behaviour contracts" and Guidance on publicising antisocial behaviour orders" together with information provided by our TOGETHER website and Action Line, provides comprehensive guidance for all practitioners, including courts, police authorities and local authorities.
This guidance sets out that, where an individual has mental health problems or a known or suspected disability, a needs assessment should always be carried out. In addition, the courts and practitioners are familiar with disability discrimination legislation which provides a general safeguard when taking court action against an individual that has a disability.
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Information is not collected centrally about the characteristics or circumstances of persons issued with an antisocial behaviour order.
Mr. Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to involve local communities in obtaining antisocial behaviour orders. [11446]
Hazel Blears: Antisocial behaviour orders are community-based orders designed to protect individuals or whole communities from behaviour that has caused, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to others. They involve local communities in the collection of evidence and in helping to enforce breaches. They also encourage local people to take an active role in protecting their communities and making them safer places in which to live.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how he expects that the civil renewal strategy will impact on applications for antisocial behaviour orders. [11378]
Hazel Blears: The Government's plan for civil renewal, Together We Can", is about empowering citizens to work with public bodies to set and achieve common goals. It will encourage more citizens to work with local agencies to obtain antisocial behaviour orders to tackle persistent problems where that is appropriate, and also involve more local people in developing strategies and activities for positive community action to help conflict resolution and youth inclusion. In providing co-operative and restorative options to deal with potential antagonism between citizens, the plan will contribute to the reduction of the level of antisocial behaviour and the need for antisocial behaviour orders.
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