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17 Oct 2005 : Column 705W—continued
Prisons
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance has been given by the prison service on the control, management and treatment of prisoners with severe personality disorders for which there is no medical treatment; and what financial arrangements exist to fund this aspect of prison management. [16966]
Fiona Mactaggart: The framework for the development of assessment and treatment services for dangerous offenders with severe personality disorders (the DSPD programme) in prison and NHS secure hospital settings, is set out in two planning and delivery guides. These guides, collectively, cover high and medium secure services, as well as community services. They have been developed in consultation with the staff involved in delivering these pilot intervention programmes and are readily available to staff, prisoners or patients, and their representatives.
The prison element of this programme is funded by dedicated funds from the Home Office.
Proceeds of Crime
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total amount of criminal assets recovered in (a) Northumbria and (b) England and Wales was in each year since the initiative to recover such assets was put in place. [17194]
Hazel Blears: Information is not available in the form requested. The total value of assets recovered by all agencies under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and earlier legislation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was £54.5 million in 2003–04 and £84.4 million in 2004–05. The total value of cash forfeiture orders and confiscation orders obtained by Northumbria police was £691,770 in 2003–04 and £909,645 in 2004–05.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much money has been seized as a result of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 in each year since its commencement, broken down by (a) constituency, (b) London borough and (c) police authority; and if he will make a statement. [17015]
Paul Goggins
[holding answer 13 October 2005]: Information is not available in the form requested. The total value of assets recovered by all agencies under the
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Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and earlier legislation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was £54.5 million in 2003–04 and £84.4 million in 2004–05. The total value of cash forfeiture orders and confiscation orders obtained by each police force in England and Wales in 2003–04 and 2004–05 is set out in the table. Information for 2005–06 is still being validated. Assets recovered in a year do not necessarily relate to orders obtained in the same year.
Rape
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) investigations into and (b) successful prosecutions for rape in London there were in each year since 1997. [16903]
Paul Goggins:
Data on the number of investigations is not centrally collected. The number of offenders found guilty at all courts for rape in London between 1997 and 2003 are contained in the following table.
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Statistics for 2004 will be available in the autumn.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 116 |
| 1998 | 111 |
| 1999 | 103 |
| 2000 | 112 |
| 2001 | 89 |
| 2002 | 119 |
| 2003 | 132 |
(21)Includes Metropolitan Police and City of London police force areas.
(22)These data are on the principal offence basis.
(23)Rape includes: rape of a female and male.
Source:
RDS—Office for Criminal Justice Reform, Home Office.
Russell Commission
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of the Russell Commission report; and if he will make a statement. [17003]
Paul Goggins: The cost of producing the Russell Commission report was £330,051. This includes communication costs, consultation exercises and events, the writing and printing of the report, launch activity and the management of the Commission's Youth Advisory Board.
The Russell Commission reported in March 2005 with a headline recommendation of the creation of a dedicated implementation body, which will take the lead in delivering a new framework for youth action and engagement. The Home Office Active Communities Directorate has created a small implementation team totake forward the Commission's recommendations. This team will work closely with other Government Departments, the private sector and voluntary sector on a number of activities between now and March 2006, at which point the dedicated implementation body will be launched.
Sexual Offences
Mr. Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Government are taking to tackle sexual offences. [16725]
Paul Goggins: The Government give high priority to tackling sexual offending because of the nature and extent of the harm caused to victims.
We have improved the care available to victims by extending and developing the network of sexual assault referral centres and supporting complementary community-based services for the victims of sexual crime, allocating £4 million from the victims fund over 2004–05 and 2005–06 for this purpose.
Building on what is known to be effective in meeting the needs of victims of sexual violence, the Department of Health and the Home Office are working together on a programme aimed at equipping health care services and professionals to identify and respond more
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effectively to victims of sexual and domestic violence and abuse by mapping existing services and developing national service guidelines.
We are committed to bringing more sexual offenders to justice. The Sexual Offences Act 2003 redefined and increased the penalties for many sexual offences and clarified the law on consent. We are encouraging more victims to report sexual crime and specially trained police officers and prosecutors have been established to deal with rape cases. At court, we have introduced a range of measures to facilitate the giving of evidence by victims.
The Government are particularly determined to ensure abuse of children is tackled rigorously and works with the police and other agencies, including those working in the internet industry, to develop policies and practice to minimise the risk of children being sexually abused. We are also establishing a new centre which will target paedophiles using the internet to distribute illegal images of children and to groom them.
Following the Bichard enquiry, wide-ranging action has been implemented, including developing consistent standards and working practices between police services, requiring much more effective joined-up working between different agencies and establishing training for head teachers and governors to help them screen out people applying for jobs working with children who may pose a risk.
We have developed the way that the police, probation service and others work together to ensure that decisions about managing known sex offenders are based on the best information available. In addition, there are also tighter requirements for known sex offenders to notify their whereabouts to the police and any plans they have to travel abroad. Based on evidence about what really works in reducing offending, intensive programmes are being run both in prison and the community (for sex offenders).
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