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28 Nov 2005 : Column 222W—continued
Domestic Violence
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding has been made available to support victims of domestic violence and their children in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) Upper Bann in each of the last five years. [31285]
Mr. Woodward: The information requested is not available either by constituency or for Northern Ireland as a whole. Victims of domestic violence are supported by a range of agencies depending on their needs but individual cases of domestic violence are not tracked at present by the agencies involved, for example, within the criminal justice system and the health and social services. A new strategy for addressing tackling domestic violence in Northern Ireland, Tackling Violence at Home", was launched in October 2005. As the strategy is implemented, it should be possible in the future to track cases and associated costs across a range of public services.
It is estimated, however, that the direct cost of services provided to victims (through the police, criminal justice system, health and social services care, housing support and civil legal cases) could amount to about £90 million each year in Northern Ireland. It is estimated that the loss of economic output in Northern Ireland due to the suffering of domestic violence victims could amount to a further £90 million each year. These estimates are based on an extrapolation of 2004 research figures for England and Wales on a pro-rata population basis.
Drugs Rehabilitation
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding has been made available for drugs rehabilitation in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) Upper Bann in each of the last five years. [31286]
Mr. Woodward: The information requested on funding for drug rehabilitation is not available centrally.
Rehabilitation is an integral part of all drug and alcohol treatment whether community or inpatient based. The cost of this generic rehabilitation cannot be disaggregated from the total costs of such programmes. The majority of drug rehabilitation can and does take place in the community as part of an overall community care and rehabilitation programme. Within each health and social services board area provision exists to refer individuals to residential rehabilitation centres outside Northern Ireland if deemed to be clinically appropriate.
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Early Release
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many prisoners released early under the provisions of the Belfast Agreement have subsequently been convicted of serious offences in Northern Ireland. [32252]
Mr. Woodward: Of the 447 persons released 'early' on their sentences under the Northern Ireland (Sentences) Act 1998, available information indicates that 28 have been subsequently convicted of further offences in Northern Ireland.
Electoral Fraud
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the impact of the arrangements in Northern Ireland which allow electoral registration officers to consult Department for Work and Pensions databases as part of measures to tackle electoral fraud. [27580]
Mr. Hanson: The Chief Electoral Officer has written to the hon. Member. The text of the letter is as follows:
The process is one in which an extract of the registration information held in respect of every elector in Northern Ireland is compared against the DWP National Insurance Number (NINO) database using the NINO, date of birth and name provided on each individual registration form. There has been a full match in 94.6 per cent. of cases and the Electoral office is currently pursuing the reason for mismatches with the remaining 5.4 per cent. In many instances the mismatches have turned out to be simple transpositions on the part of electors, for example AB123465D being recorded at AB123456D.
The Electoral office is of the view that the use of the NINO and subsequent checking against the DWP database has led to an extremely accurate Register in Northern Ireland with few if any illegal duplications or phantom entries"
Failure to Stop after Accidents
Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were proceeded against for the offence of failing to stop after an accident in each Police Service of Northern Ireland district in each of the last five years. [31951]
Mr. Hanson: The statistics provided in Table 1 include the offences of 'failing to stop—damage only' and 'failing to stop—injury', and are based on the PSNI District Command Unit in which an offender's address falls. Due to the lack of comparability of 1999 data, (based on crimes reported to 12 police divisions) figures for that year have not been included.
Data relating to 2004 will be available in early 2006.
(111)Data are based on the police District Command Unit in which an offender's address falls. The District Command Unit structure became operational in April 2001. However, for the purposes of comparability with later years, figures for 2000 and the first quarter of 2001 are also based on the 2001 DCU structure.
(112)Missing data relate to those offenders for which DCU information is not available.
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Fireworks and Bonfires
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many injuries associated with fireworks and bonfires there were over the recent Halloween period; and what the figures were in each year since 2001 broken down by health board area. [32097]
Mr. Woodward: Information on the number of people who sustained injuries associated with bonfires is not available. Information on the number of people injured as a result of fireworks over the most recent Halloween period are not yet available. However, figures for the years 2001 to 2004 are available and are detailed in the following table for each Health Board area in Northern Ireland.
| EHSSB | NHSSB | SHSSB | WHSSB | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 19 | 11 | 18 | 7 | 55 |
| 2003 | 13 | 7 | 14 | 11 | 45 |
| 2002 | 22 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 38 |
| 2001 | 50 | 26 | 38 | 22 | 136 |
Source:
Annual Departmental Return, FWK1.
GP Appointments
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many general practitioner appointments in Northern Ireland were not attended by members of the public in each of the last five years; and how many general practitioners in Northern Ireland are over 65 years of age. [31269]
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Mr. Woodward: The information is as follows.
(a) The Department does not centrally hold information on missed appointments at GP surgeries. This could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
(b) As at 22 November 2005, there are 25 general practitioners over the age of 65 who are working in primary care. Some of these are partners in a general practice while others are sessional (locum) practitioners.
Health Professionals
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many dental (a) nurses, (b) hygienists and (c) therapists there were in Northern Ireland on the last date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [32090]
Mr. Woodward: The vast majority of dental nurses, dental hygienists and dental therapists are employed by independent dental contractors, and statistical information on such staff is not held centrally.
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