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9 Oct 2006 : Column 89W—continued
Personal Data
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (1) which individuals and organisations have been consulted in relation to her Department's consultation ‘Increasing Penalties for Deliberate and Wilful Misuse of Personal Data’; [91874]
(2) what progress has been made with her Department's consultation, ‘Increasing penalties for deliberate and wilful misuse of personal data’. [91875]
Vera Baird: A list of those organisations who have been consulted on the Department’s public consultation on ‘Increasing penalties for deliberate and wilful misuse of personal data’ is shown on pages 7 to 9 of the consultation paper. However, this list is not meant to be exhaustive or exclusive and responses are welcomed from anyone with an interest or views on the subject covered in the paper.
The document may be accessed via the Department’s website at http://www.dca.gov.uk/consult/misuse_data/consultation0906.pdf
The consultation paper was launched in July 2006 and will close on 30 October when all responses will be considered.
Solicitors
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many non-legal professionals sat as members of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal in 2005. [91405]
Bridget Prentice: 12 non-legal professionals sat as members of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal hearings in 2005.
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when she last discussed with officials the length of time taken to call meetings of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal. [91406]
Bridget Prentice: As Minister with delegated responsibility for legal services, I regularly meet with officials of the Law Society. The length of time taken to call meetings of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal was raised at a meeting I had with Law Society officials in March of this year. DCA officials also regularly update me and have regular contact with the Law Society.
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many meetings of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal were held in 2005; and how many individual members participated at each meeting. [91407]
Bridget Prentice: For the year 1 May 2005 to 30 April 2006, the solicitor's disciplinary tribunal (SDT) sat on 136 days for the hearing of applications. Each tribunal consists of three members in total, two of whom are solicitor members and one of whom is a lay member.
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the average time was between a Law Society adjudication and a hearing of the solicitors disciplinary tribunal in the latest period for which figures are available. [91408]
Bridget Prentice: The Law Society does not maintain statistics on the time between a Law Society adjudication and the solicitors disciplinary tribunal hearing. As far as the SDT is concerned, a case starts with the lodgement of an application. A survey of all cases heard to the year ending April 2006, shows that 26 per cent. were concluded within six months of being placed before the SDT. A further 68 per cent. were concluded between six months and a year.
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many solicitors breached solicitors practice rules 1990 in each of the last four years. [91517]
Bridget Prentice: The Law Society does not maintain statistics on the basis of whether the misconduct alleged was a breach of the practice rules or of other regulations. It does keep statistics on solicitors who have been subject to sanctions by the Law Society and the solicitors disciplinary tribunal.
The number of solicitors subject to a penalty by the solicitors disciplinary tribunal in the last four years is as follows:
| Number | |
Translation Services
Mr. Weir: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court cases have been dismissed in each of the last five years as a result of the lack of translation services. [89456]
Ms Harman: The information requested is not collected. Her Majesty’s Courts Service is giving consideration to the routine collection of data relating to interpreting and translation services used in court.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what translation services are provided during court cases where some or all of those involved do not speak English. [89457]
Ms Harman: Interpreting services at court are provided in accordance with article 6(3) of the European convention on human rights whereby anyone charged with a criminal offence is entitled to the free assistance of an interpreter if they cannot understand or speak the language used in court. Witnesses giving evidence for either the prosecution or defence are also provided with an interpreter if required. The national agreement on arrangements for the attendance of interpreters in investigations and proceedings within the criminal justice system governs interpreting and translation services and was reissued on 6 July 2006 as Home Office circular 17/2006.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs on how many occasions translation services were provided in courts in the most recent year for which records are available, broken down by (a) court and (b) language requiring translation. [89458]
Ms Harman: The information requested is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Her Majesty’s Courts Service is giving consideration to the routine collection of data relating to interpreting and translation services used in court.
Welsh Language
Hywel Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what arrangements are in place to ensure that attendance allowance appeal tribunals in Wales may be held in English and Welsh. [89923]
Vera Baird: Tribunals in Wales are normally heard in English. The tribunals service can arrange for tribunal hearings for all social security benefits, including attendance allowance, to be held in Welsh and where this is requested, will provide bilingual tribunal panel members and clerks at a venue closest to the appellant.
Hywel Williams:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many
attendance allowance appeal tribunal hearings in Wales were held in English and Welsh in each of the last three years. [89924]
Vera Baird: The information requested is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Hywel Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many attendance allowance appeal tribunal members in Wales speak English and Welsh. [89925]
Vera Baird: There are 14 Welsh speaking tribunal panel members that are qualified to sit on attendance allowance tribunals.
Scotland
Agency Staff
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what average hourly rate his Department paid to employment agencies for agency staff in each year since 1999, broken down by agency. [89584]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office does not record the information in the form requested.
Child Poverty
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many children were living in poverty in (a) Scotland and (b) Dunfermline and West Fife in each year since 1997. [89003]
David Cairns: The following table presents the number and proportion of children living in low- income households in Scotland from 1996-97 to 2004-05. The relative low-income measure compares against the median of the same year. The absolute measure compares against the median in the baseline year of 1996-97, uprated to remove the effects of inflation. Data are available at Scotland level only, not by constituency.
Figures are produced annually and estimates for 2005-06 are not yet available.
| Proportion and number of children in low income households, below 60 per cent. of GB Median Income | ||||||||
| Absolute | Relative | |||||||
| Before housing costs | After housing costs | Before Housing Costs | After Housing Costs | |||||
| Percentage | Number (Thousand) | Percentage | Number (Thousand) | Percentage | Number (Thousand) | Percentage | Number (Thousand) | |
Departmental Carbon Emissions
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate he has made of the total carbon emissions from his Department’s buildings in each year since 1997. [89589]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999 and its energy usage has since 2003 been included in DCA returns. Prior to 2003 the information was not collected as there was no requirement to report.
Departmental Expenditure
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much (a) his Department and (b) its agencies spent on (i) electricity use and (ii) water and sewerage services in each year since 1997. [89990]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999; since that date the Office has spent the following on electricity use and wager and sewage.
| (£) | ||
| Electricity | Water and Sewage | |
| (1) Part year | ||
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