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5 Jun 2006 : Column 50W—continued
Somme Anniversary
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to mark the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme; and if he will make a statement. [73268]
Mr. Watson: It is assumed that the hon. Member is referring to the 90th Anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, which occurs on 1 July 2006. An Anglo-French commemoration will take place at Thiepval on that day, the details of which have not been finalised. The main feature of the commemoration will be a Service of Remembrance organised by the Royal British Legion. It is expected that regimental associations and cadets will be present. A British military band is being provided.
Vehicle Sharing
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what incentives his Department offers to encourage staff to share vehicles when travelling to work. [73092]
Mr. Watson: Encouraging staff to share vehicles when travelling to work is dependent on the circumstances of each site. For example, at Abbey Wood in Bristol, there is a scheme offering 300 car-sharing priority parking spaces. There are also informal schemes established on an individual basis. The Royal Navy also encourages the practice through its intranet sites with schemes in place at Royal Navy Fleet HQ, and at Portsmouth and Devonport Naval Bases.
Vehicle-sharing is one of a number of measures that the Ministry of Defence encourages as part of its work on sustainable development and travel. These include the use of both telephone- and video-conference facilities for business meetings, and offering staff a pay advance to purchase bicycles and public transport season tickets for commuting to their place of work.
Trade and Industry
Industrial Injuries
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and (b) vibration white finger claims have been submitted from Tamworth constituency, broken down by district electoral ward. [71226]
Malcolm Wicks: Although I cannot provide statistics by electoral ward, I have broken down the claims submitted from Tamworth constituents by postcode(1). The figures are as follows:
(1) The postcodes listed include areas beyond the Tamworth constituency boundary.
| Postcode | Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | Vibration white finger |
The figures for Tamworth constituency are 1,700 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease claims and 437 vibration white finger claims submitted.
Home Department
Adults with Learning Difficulties
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he has taken to ensure that adults with learning difficulties report crimes to the police; and how this action has been communicated to people with learning difficulties. [71987]
Mr. McNulty: In November 2005, the Home Office hosted a workshop attended by representatives of organisations who work with people who have learning disabilities. Since then, an Action Plan has been developed specifically to tackle low reporting rates amongst people in this vulnerable group. Among other things, the Action Plan identifies the need to raise awareness of sexual abuse with vulnerable adults and we are working to take these actions forward.
The Home Office has also worked with Respond, Mencap, the Down's Syndrome Association and the National Forum for People with Learning Difficulties to produce an easy-access booklet called “Protecting You from Sexual Abuse”, and this can be found on the Home Office website. The booklet has been written for people with learning disabilities to provide information and guidance on the law in relation to sexual offences.
Amendments to Legislation
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the occasions when an amendment has been moved by (a) a Labour back bencher, (b) an Opposition back bencher and (c) an Opposition front bench spokesman to a Bill sponsored by his Department that has been accepted by his Department during the current session; and if he will make a statement. [72097]
Mr. Byrne: The Home Department has sponsored the following Bills/Acts during the current session:
Racial and Religious Hatred Act
Identity Cards Act
Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act
Terrorism Act
Charities Bill
Fraud Bill
Police and Justice Bill
Violent Crime Reduction Bill.
Information on amendments moved and accepted during the Committee and Report Stages of these Acts/Bills is published in the Official Report.
Animal Experimentation
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what ways his Department plans to contribute to the review of European Directive 86/609, on animal experimentation; and if he will make a statement. [72391]
Joan Ryan: The European Commission is currently reviewing Directive 86/609 to take account of technical progress since it was first adopted almost 20 years ago. The directive is transposed into United Kingdom legislation by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
Four technical expert working groups have already provided preliminary advice to the Commission on scope and definitions; severity/cost/benefit; ethical review; and authorisation of procedures. These groups had a strong United Kingdom representation, one of which was chaired by a Home Office official.
Four more detailed technical issues were subsequently referred to the Animal Welfare Committee of the European Food Standards Agency (EFSA) for consideration and advice. The Commission is now considering the EFSA advice, and has commissioned a regulatory impact assessment to which the Home Office has recently responded.
The Commission has indicated that it will next produce a consultation document in the summer of 2006. This is expected to take the form of a draft revised directive. The Home Office will respond once it has had the opportunity to consider its content and consult scientific community stakeholders.
Antisocial Behaviour Orders
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance is given to (a) local authorities and (b) the police about how and in what circumstances antisocial behaviour orders are issued to children under 18 years. [72281]
Mr. McNulty:
There is a range of sources of guidance for local authorities and the police on issuing antisocial behaviour orders to children and young
people. The Home Office's comprehensive “Guidance on ASBOs” issued jointly with the Youth Justice Board and the Association of Chief Police Officers is currently being updated and will be issued shortly. In addition joint guidance issued by the Home Office, Youth Justice Board and the Association of Chief Police Officers, issued in March 2005, provides youth offending teams with advice on their role in preventing and reducing antisocial behaviour. Practitioners can also access information provided by the Together campaign in the form of a website, an extensive range of leaflets and a telephone action line offering advice on all aspects of antisocial behaviour.
John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders have been issued in each local authority area in the County of Durham since 2001, broken down by age. [72460]
Mr. McNulty: The available information is in the following table.
| Number of ASBOs, as reported to the Home Office, by all courts and where restrictions are imposed within local authority areas in Durham, by age at date of decision, 1 January 2001 to 30 September 2005 | |||
| Age groups | |||
| Area | 10 to 17 | 18+ | Total |
Asylum Seekers
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applicants whose applications have been refused and whose appeal rights have been exhausted have had their claims reconsidered on the basis of further representations in each year since 1997; what criteria are used in deciding whether to allow claims to be reconsidered; what estimate has been made of the number of such applicants eligible to have their claims reconsidered; what the average time taken to conduct such reconsideration has been in each year; when such reconsiderations commenced; what the effect is on the status of applicants of having their claims reconsidered; and how many such reconsiderations in each year have resulted in the grant of asylum status or other permission which results in the applicant being able legally to remain in the UK. [73787]
Mr. Byrne: The information requested is not available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) Nigerian, (b) Bangladeshi, (c) Pakistani, (d) Turkish and (e) Somali asylum seekers are living in the UK. [72907]
Mr. Byrne: The information requested is not available in the format requested.
The following table shows the number of asylum seekers from Bangladesh, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia and Turkey supported by NASS in the UK as at the end of March 2006.
| Asylum seekers( 1,2,3 ) (including dependants) from Bangladesh, Nigeria. Pakistan, Somalia and Turkey supported by NASS in the UK as at the end of March 2006 | |||
| In NASS accommodation | Receipt of subsistence only support | Total | |
| (1) Provisional figures rounded to the nearest 5 with * = 1 or 2. Figures may not sum due to rounding. (2) Excludes unaccompanied asylum seeking children supported by local authorities and cases that pre-date the establishment of NASS in April 2000, administered by local authorities under the Interim Provisions. (3) Excludes those in initial accommodation. | |||
Black/Asian Employees
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) black and Asian and (b) other people are employed in his Department's press office. [74351]
Mr. Byrne: The numbers employed in the press office are as follows:
| Number | |
Community Support Officers
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the retention rate of community support officers in (a) Gwent, (b) South Wales, (c) Dyfed Powys and (d) North Wales police force areas in each year since they were first employed. [71372]
Mr. McNulty: Information on the retention rate of community support officers is not collected centrally. However, the available information regarding the number of community support officers leaving the Welsh police force areas is given in the table.
| The number of PCSOs leaving (FTE)( 1) by each police force area in Wales, in 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05( 2) | |||
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | |
| (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (2 )These figures have been calculated from the quarterly leaving figures submitted by police forces. (3 )Data is not available for this period. | |||
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