| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
18 Apr 2006 : Column 361W—continued
Security Industry Authority
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library a copy of the Harrington Report on the Security Industry Authority. [59418]
Paul Goggins: The Harrington Report will be published and copies placed in the House Library in due course.
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications have been received for licences in the security industry; what the average time taken to process the applications has been; and what the target time is. [54772]
Hazel Blears: As of 22 March, 126,199 applications had been received by the Security Industry Authority, and approximately 13,172 were waiting to be input onto the system. By virtue of the backlog (caused by some parts of the industry failing to meet their part of the agreement to submit licences over a 14 month period) the average time taken to process a licence has risen from the target of six weeks for over 80 per cent. of applications to approximately 10 weeks.
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications have been received for new Security Industry Authority identity cards; how many applications he expects to be processed prior to 20 March 2006; how long on average it takes to process an application; and if he will make a statement. [54930]
Hazel Blears: From 20 March 2006, contracted manned guards have been required to be licensed to carry out licensable activities. As at 22 March, 85,172 applications had been received from the manned guarding sector, 13,172 were waiting to be entered onto the system and 42,323 had received a licence. By virtue of the backlog (caused by some parts of the industry failing to meet their part of the agreement to submit licences over a 14 month period) the average time taken to process a licence has risen from six weeks for over 80 per cent. of applications to approximately 10 weeks.
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff working in the Securitas Cash-in-Transit Division are (a) in receipt of Security Industry Authority licenses and (b) awaiting the issue of such a licence. [58985]
Paul Goggins:
Licensing of the private security industry, including those who deal with cash and valuables in transit, is a matter for the Security Industry Authority (SIA). An SIA licence permitting an individual to work within the private security industry is the property of the individual, and individual
18 Apr 2006 : Column 362W
applications do not include details of the employer. Information on whether or not a particular individual is licensed, or whether or not a particular company has been awarded Approved Contractor status is available through the SIA's website at www.the-sia.org.uk.
To be approved under ACS, a company needs to have met the current criterion by having at least 50 per cent. of its licensable staff actually licensed, and a further 35 per cent. pending.
Sentencing
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many criminals sentenced to a fixed term in prison of more than six months have served the whole sentence in each year since 1990. [62385]
Fiona Mactaggart: A prison sentence normally comprises two parts. The first is served in prison and the second in the community. All prisoners are normally released before the end of their sentence in order to facilitate their reintegration into the community.
Sex Offenders
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sex offenders released on parole in the last five years were (a) subsequently recalled to prison prior to their sentence expiry date (SED) and (b) reconvicted after their SED. [45647]
Fiona Mactaggart: The table gives details of sex offenders released on parole and subsequently recalled. Figures for reconvictions after the SED are not kept centrally and could be only obtained at disproportionate cost.
| All sexual offences | |
|---|---|
| 2000–01 | 18 |
| 2001–02 | 22 |
| 2002–03 | 23 |
| 2003–04 | 27 |
| 2004–05 | 19 |
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals who appear on the sex offenders register have worked in (a) primary schools, (b) secondary schools and (c) universities in each of the last 10 years. [62982]
Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
My Department does not hold this information.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals already listed on the Sex Offender Register were subsequently arrested for another sexual offence in each of the last 10 years. [63016]
Paul Goggins:
The data requested are not collected centrally and to do so would incur a disproportionate cost.
18 Apr 2006 : Column 363W
Sexual Assault Referral Centres
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans the Government have to increase the number of sexual assault referral centres. [63009]
Paul Goggins: There are currently 14 SARCs with a further six under development with the support of Home Office funding from 2005–06. The Home Office has allocated around £0.5 million to support the development of sexual assault referral centres in 2006–07 and has produced guidance on developing SARCs for local police and health services. In addition Home Office funding of £2 million has been allocated to introduce independent sexual violence advisors (ISVAs) and increase the number of independent domestic violence advisors (IDVAs). The ISVAs, to be based in SARCs and voluntary sector organisations will provide advice and support through the criminal justice system for victims of sexual violence .
Sexual Harassment (Anonymity)
Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on anonymity for the accused in sexual harassment cases. [61533]
Paul Goggins [holding answer 27 March 2006]: The Interdepartmental Ministerial Group on Sexual Offending, which I chair, has recently scrutinised the operation of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. This included a review of the impact of the current guidance issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers and by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) on the disclosure of information about the identity of suspects in sex offences before charge. The review noted that neither the police nor the PCC had received any complaints about breaches of those pieces of guidance. This issue will be included in the next stage of monitoring of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, which is due to begin this summer.
Sham Marriages
Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of sham marriages which have taken place since February 2005. [63620]
Mr. McNulty: The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 places a statutory duty on registrars to report to the Home Office those marriages where they have reasonable grounds for suspecting that the marriage will be a sham.
Since 1 February 2005, there have been 234 reports of suspicious marriages from registrars.
Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many successful convictions related to the practice of sham marriages there have been since February 2005. [63621]
Mr. McNulty:
Since February 2005 IND has recorded 23 successful convictions related to the practice of sham marriages.
18 Apr 2006 : Column 364W
Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to abolish the two year probationary period for immigrant spouses or partners. [63622]
Mr. McNulty: We have no plans to abolish the probationary period for those persons who have been granted leave on the basis of a marriage, civil partnership or a long-standing relationship with a British citizen or person with indefinite leave to remain.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |