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7 Nov 2005 : Column 84W—continued
Private Security Firms
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he gives to local authorities on the use of private security firms; and if he will make a statement. [20633]
Paul Goggins:
From March 2004 the Home Office and the Security Industry Authority (SIA) have had extensive discussions with local authority licensing staff in preparation for the introduction of door supervisor licensing. The SIA continues to work in partnership with the police and local authorities to ensure that licensing requirements are met by individuals and companies throughout the private security industry.
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Race for Justice Project
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to introduce the race for justice project commissioned by the Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Criminal Justice Board across the rest of England and Wales; and if he will make a statement. [21978]
Fiona Mactaggart: The race for justice project was commissioned in 2002 to identify the views of the minority ethnic communities about their perceptions of the agencies that work within the Criminal Justice System in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. It was designed to engage with black and minority ethnic communities, increase awareness, address concerns and try to increase confidence in the criminal justice system. In particular, the project has worked with newcomers to the area, producing a booklet 'Welcome to Britain' which addresses some of the main issues for newcomers to the Hampshire area.
It is important that all LCJBs develop projects which reflect their local circumstances and that this is tailored to needs locally rather than seeking to simply introduce the Hampshire and Isle of Wight approach nationally.
Secure Training Centres
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what qualifications are held by each of the psychologists employed in each of the secure training centres. [22860]
Fiona Mactaggart: The minimum qualifications for psychologists employed at each secure training centre are defined in the contracts with the operators. The Hassockfield contract requires a degree in psychology leading to graduate registration with the British Psychological Society. The contracts for Medway, Rainsbrook and Oakhill each require a degree in psychology or an approved behavioural science degree.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many times each of the four secure training centres has been inspected in the past six years; [22866]
(2) how often each of the secure training centres received an unannounced visit by inspectors in each of the last six years. [22867]
Fiona Mactaggart: The information requested is given in the following tables.
| Medway | Rainsbrook | Hassockfield | Oakhill | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | (29)— |
| 2001 | 0 | 0 | 0 | (29)— |
| 2002 | 0 | 0 | 0 | (29)— |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 | 0 | (29)— |
| 2004 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2005 (to date) 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
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| Medway | Rainsbrook | Hassockfield | Oakhill | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1 | 1 | 1 | (29)— |
| 2001 | 1 | 1 | 1 | (29)— |
| 2002 | 1 | 1 | 1 | (29)— |
| 2003 | 2 | (30)0 | 1 | (29)— |
| 2004 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2005 (to date) (31)0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
(29) Opened August 2004
(30) CSCI deferred planned inspection to early 2004.
(31) Planned for December 2005
Sex Offenders
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent changes his Department has made in procedures for checking whether sex offenders are entering the UK; and if he will make a statement. [13248]
Mr. McNulty: All people coming to the UK are required to provide evidence of their identity and nationality. This is usually done by means of a passport or identity card. In addition checks are made against the UK watch list in all cases for non-EEA citizens and on a risk assessed basis for EEA citizens.
In case of any doubts or if information held on immigration service databases indicates that someone is of interest, further inquiries including reference to the other border agencies may be made.
Tagged Offenders
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many tagged offenders re-offended while tagged in (a) Romford, (b) Havering and (c) Essex in the last period for which figures are available. [22967]
Fiona Mactaggart: The figures requested for the three areas in question are not available centrally and cannot be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Tax Credits
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what co-operation the police are providing to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs to tackle organised fraud in relation to tax credits; and if he will make a statement. [24541]
Paul Goggins: I understand that Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigators meet regularly with the police to discuss areas of mutual interest including organised fraud in the tax credits system. There are established mechanisms between HMRC and the police for the exchange of information and intelligence in relation to specific criminal activity. Where resources permit the police have been able to assist HMRC both in the arrest of suspects and in searching premises for evidence.
Travellers
Mr. David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to amend section 62A to E of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to streamline the procedure for the removal of illegally encamped Travellers. [24098]
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Paul Goggins: Sections 62A to E of the Criminal Justice and Public Order 1994 were introduced by the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 to provide the police with an additional power to deal with unauthorised encampments. The Government keeps all existing enforcement powers under review to ensure that they are adequate and public agencies are using them effectively.
TREASURY
Corporation of London
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what meetings he has had with representatives of the Corporation of London in the last six months. [25083]
John Healey: At the Corporation's invitation, the Chancellor delivered the 2005 Mansion House speech.
Council Tax Revaluation
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely impact of the revaluation of council tax in Bedfordshire. [23805]
Mr. Woolas: I have been asked to reply.
The terms of reference for Sir Michael Lyons' independent inquiry require him to make recommendations on how best to reform council tax, taking into account revaluation of domestic property. My right hon. Friends the Deputy Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have agreed with Sir Michael that he will extend his work so that he can consider issues relating to
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the functions of local government and its future role, as well as, and prior to, making recommendations on local government funding. The Government have introduced into the House the Council Tax (New Valuation List for England) Bill which provides for the postponement of council tax revaluation. This will enable revaluation to take account of the Lyons Inquiry's extended work which will inform the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007.
Employment Statistics
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were (a) employed and (b) unemployed in each electoral ward in Cleethorpes constituency in each of the past 10 years. [24754]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl to Shona McIsaac, dated 7 November 2005:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about unemployment. I am replying in her absence. (24754)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment from the Labour Force Survey following International Labour Organisation definitions. Estimates of unemployment are not available for wards as the survey sample size for such areas is too small.
However, ONS also compiles statistics for local areas of people claiming jobseeker's allowance. The attached table shows annual averages for 1996 to 2004 for wards within the Cleethorpes constituency.
These statistics are published on the Office for National Statistics's Nomis(r) website: www.nomisweb.co.uk.
(32) Electoral wards are defined on the basis of the boundaries as they were in 1991
Source:
Jobcentre Plus administrative systems
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