| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
16 Jan 2006 : Column 1149W—continued
Visas
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information has been passed to the UK Government under the Schengen visa information system about the number of Schengen visas that have been (a) refused and (b) revoked. [40357]
16 Jan 2006 : Column 1150W
Andy Burnham: The visa information system (VIS) will be a database that assists in the issuing of Schengen short stay visas. It is unlikely to be operational until 2007 and therefore no information from the VIS has been passed to the UK to date.
The UK, as do other member states, has access to information on Schengen visa applications including the number of visas issued and refused by member states.
Work Permits
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of work permit applications were refused in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [40236]
Mr. McNulty: The number of applications that were refused in the last 12 months (January 2005 to December 2005) was 20,856 which was 12 per cent. of the total work permit applications decided.
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for work permits that were originally refused were subsequently granted after being resubmitted through a recognised agency in the last 12 months. [40237]
Mr. McNulty: Work permit applications can be submitted by an employer or their representative. The only information available relates to applications granted following a request for review of an initial refusal. There were 475 such applications granted on review in the last 12 months (January 2005 to December 2005).
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to prevent abuse of the work permits scheme. [40279]
Mr. McNulty:
Work Permits (UK) caseworkers carry out a risk assessment when the application is submitted. They can request further checks of an employer before a work permit is issued. Further checks, either random or intelligence-driven, can follow the issue of the work permit. These checks can result in revocation of permits, refusal of existing permit applications by the employers in question and the curtailment of leave of those who
16 Jan 2006 : Column 1151W
have permits with the company. Where they believe that a work permit is forged or has been obtained using deception, Immigration Officers and Entry Clearance Officers can refuse entry.
On 27 April 2004, the Prime Minister announced a top-to-bottom review of managed migration routes, to assess the extent to which they were open to abuse or otherwise open to improvement. This has included an ongoing review of the work permit arrangements.
The Government have recently undertaken a consultation exercise on proposals to replace existing migration routes for work and study, including the work permit system, with a new points-based system. One of the objectives in introducing the new system is to ensure that it is robust against abuse. The Government's response to the consultation document will be published in due course.
Worker Registration Scheme
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of workers from the EU accession states who have not registered under the Worker Registrations Scheme and are working in the UK. [40360]
Mr. McNulty: Responsibility for registering on the Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) lies with the individual worker from the EU Accession state, although their employer also has some responsibility to ensure that they have registered.
As nationals of the European Economic Area (EEA), Accession state workers are not subject to immigration control on arrival in the UK and do not therefore require a visa or entry clearance. As is the case with all EEA nationals they have a right of free movement and residence dependent on their activity in the United Kingdom. Registration on the WRS is not a condition for entry, but a requirement for nationals from Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia to be lawfully employed in a job if it continues for more than 30 days. There are therefore no figures or estimates available as to the numbers of accession nationals who have entered the United Kingdom and are working without registration.
Yarl's Wood Detention Centre
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many detainees at the Yarl's Wood Detention Centre on 1 January had been detained for (a) less than one month, (b) between one and three months, (c) between three and six months, (d) between six and 12 months and (e) over 12 months. [41483]
Mr. McNulty: The Home Office publishes a quarterly snapshot of people detained under Immigration Act powers on the last Saturday of each quarter. The latest published information pertains to people detained as at the 24 September 2005.
On 24 September 2005 there were 245 persons recorded as being held in the Immigration Removal Centre at Yarl's Wood. This figure is rounded to the nearest five, in accordance with National Statistics protocols. The following table gives the breakdown of this figure by the length of detention.
16 Jan 2006 : Column 1152W
Published statistics on immigration and asylum are available on the Home Office's Research Development and Statistics website http://wwwhomeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.
The next quarterly snapshot is for 31 December 2005 and will be published at the end of February 2006.
(92) Figures rounded to the nearest 5; with * = 1 or 2, may not sum due to rounding and exclude persons detained in police cells and those detained under both criminal and immigration powers.
(93) Relates to current period of detention only.
(94) 2 months is defined as 61 days; 4 months is defined as 122 days; 6 months is defined as 182 days.
Young Offenders
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what (a) support services and (b) training are in place to help children of school age who have been convicted of a crime in (i) Ruislip-Northwood constituency, (ii) the London borough of Hillingdon, (iii) Greater London and (iv) England. [40248]
Fiona Mactaggart: Young people under 18 convicted of an offence throughout England and Wales, will, unless the court deems it unnecessary, receive a disposal which requires an active intervention from the Youth Offending Team. Depending on the young person's circumstances, the intervention will be designed to challenge those attitudes held by the young person which appear to have contributed to their offending behaviour, and incorporate a restorative justice element, where appropriate, either to the victim or the community at large. In addition, all youth offending teams have a target to ensure that 90 per cent. of young persons under their supervision are in full-time appropriate education training or employment by the end of their sentence, recognising the key role that this can play in reducing the risk of re-offending.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many notifiable offences were committed by young people aged under (a) 21, (b) 18, (c) 16, (d) 15, (e) 14, (f) 13, (g) 12, (h) 11 and (i) 10 years in each year since 1980–81; and if he will make a statement. [41194]
Hazel Blears:
The information requested is not collected centrally. It is not possible to identify the age of the offender in the 'notifiable' offences data series.
16 Jan 2006 : Column 1153W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |