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28 Nov 2006 : Column 645W—continued
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have their DNA profile stored on the National DNA Database; and what proportion of these people are from each ethnic minority background. [101189]
Joan Ryan: The information requested is shown in the table which gives a breakdown of the number of Subject Sample DNA Profiles on the National DNA Database by ethnic appearance for all forces.
| Number of subject sample DNA Profiles on the National DNA Database for all forces—by ethnic appearance of subject | |||
| Ethnic appearance | Total subject profile count | Individuals count using 11 per cent. replication rate | Percentage breakdown |
| Notes: 1. The data cover forces in England and Wales, Scottish forces, the Police Service for Northern Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey, the Ministry of Defence Police etc. 2. The figures given in column 2 are the number of DNA subject sample profiles held on the Database as at 20 November 2006. This is due to samples being taken from some individuals on more than one occasion (i.e. due to replicate sampling). It is estimated that the current level of replication is about 11 per cent. 3. The figures given in column 3 are the estimated number of individuals on the National DNA Database. 4. It should be noted that no data on ethnic appearance are recorded for approx 10 per cent. of samples. | |||
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many misclassifications have resulted from the use of the DNA database. [101217]
Joan Ryan: There are no false or inaccurate records on the National DNA Database (NDNAD) that we are aware of. The NDNAD's Supplier Accreditation section carries out continuous quality monitoring of forensic suppliers. Data may become available which indicate that a DNA profile is incorrect but attributed to the right person (i.e. there has been an error in deriving the profile number stored on the NDNAD from the biological sample); or that a DNA profile is correct but attributed to the wrong person (i.e. the samples and personal details have somehow been switched). If we have reason to believe there is inaccuracy in any record, that record is suspended on the Database pending an investigation—the outcome of which is that the record may be reinstated unchanged, or amended, or deleted.
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of maintaining the DNA database has been in each year of its operation. [101221]
Mr. McNulty: The following table gives the costs, over the years 2002-03 to 2005-06, for the two key areas of National DNA Database (NDNAD) activity: NDNAD Services and Supplier Accreditation. NDNAD Services activity is concerned with the day to day operation of the NDNAD, for example loading DNA profiles, delivery of match reports, and handling of inquiries (principally from police forces and forensic suppliers). The costs also include maintenance of the NDNAD IT system as well as business support, including accommodation. Supplier Accreditation activity is concerned with the accreditation of the forensic supplier laboratories that analyse police DNA submissions, and thus supply DNA profiles to the NDNAD.
This accreditation involves scrutinising prospective new suppliers to the Database as well as continuous quality monitoring of existing suppliers. Data are not available for years before 2002-03, as in the past the costs of the NDNAD were tightly bound in with other costs incurred by the Forensic Science Service. The process of clearly drawing out these costs was fully resolved as part of the process of separating the NDNAD custodian from the FSS, which was completed in December 2005, when the FSS was vested as a Government owned company and the NDNAD transferred from the FSS to the Home Office. These figures do not include payments made to police forces under the DNA expansion programme which ran from 2000 to 2005, to enable them to retrieve more samples from scenes of crime and to take samples from more individuals.
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
Dr. David Wynn-Williams
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what investigations were conducted by the police into the death of Dr. David Wynn-Williams on 24 March 2002; and whether anyone was (a) arrested and (b) prosecuted in connection with his death. [103501]
Mr. McNulty:
I understand that following the death of Dr. Wynn-Williams Cambridgeshire Constabulary undertook an investigation, as a result of which the Crown Prosecution Service determined that a
prosecution was appropriate and the driver of one of the vehicles involved was summonsed for causing death by dangerous driving and driving without due care and attention. The person concerned was convicted of driving without due care and attention and fined £1,000, disqualified from driving for two years and required to re-sit the driving test.
Drink-Driving
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many breathalyser tests were carried out by police officers in each year since 2003, broken down by police authority; and what proportion were found to be positive in each area. [102455]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested can be found in the Home Office statistical publication “Motoring Offences and Breath Test Statistics, England and Wales 2004”, issue 05/06, table 21.
Copies of the above publication are available in the Library. The publication can also be downloaded from the Home Office RDS website, link attached:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb0506.pdf.
2005 data will be available in 2007.
Fireworks
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fixed penalty notices were issued in (a) England and Wales and (b) each London borough for (i) letting off or throwing fireworks in any highway, street or thoroughfare or public place, (ii) possession of adult fireworks in a public place by those aged under the age of 18 years, (iii) possession of a category 4 firework and (iv) breaching the curfew time for the use of fireworks in each of the last five years. [102507]
Mr. McNulty: The penalty notice for disorder (PND) scheme was rolled out to all police forces in England and Wales during the 2003-04 financial year, under the provisions of the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001. Under the scheme, the police are able to issue penalty notices to offenders for a range of minor disorder offences including a number of fireworks offences, some of which did not become part of the scheme until October 2004. No admission of guilt is required and the PND recipient discharges all liability for the offence and receives no criminal record if the penalty is paid.
Data on the number of PNDs issued in the Metropolitan police force area as well as England and Wales for the years 2004, 2005 and provisional data from January to June 2006, are provided in the following table. Data are only available broken down by police force and therefore a London borough breakdown is not available.
Fixed Penalty Notices/Disorder Notices
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what types of (a) fixed penalty notices and (b) notices for disorder have been issued in the last five years. [100908]
Mr. McNulty: Information on fixed penalty notices issued for endorsable and non-endorsable motoring offences by offence groups can be found in the annual Home Office publication ‘Offences relating to motor vehicles, England and Wales, Supplementary tables'—Tables 20(a) to 20(c) refer. Copies are available in the Library. They can also be accessed on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics website at
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/motor1.html
Data are also collected centrally on the disposal, (i.e. paid, fine registration certificate issued etc) of fixed penalty notices issued. However because of the time taken for the procedures for payment to be enforced the data are collected approximately nine months later than the period of issue.
Tables 21 (a) and 21 (b) of the above publication details data by number and percentage of fixed penalty notices by result for the previous year.
Data on the number of PNDs issued in 2004, 2005 and provisional data for 2006, broken down by police force area and offence, are placed in the House Libraries.
Data on the number of fixed penalty notices issued for environmental offences are available via the below link on the DEFRA website.
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/localenv/legislation/fpn/
Gender Equality
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to carry out gender impact assessments of his Department's major policy developments and new legislation. [101536]
Mr. Byrne: From April 2007, my Department will carry out gender impact assessments of major policy developments and new legislation in line with the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 (Public Authorities) (Statutory Duties) Order 2006 (No. 2930). We shall refer to Equal Opportunities Commission's (EOC) Code of Practice on the Gender Equality Duty and their specific guidance when available.
Halliburton
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many private finance initiative and public private partnership contracts with his Department and its agencies have been won by Halliburton or its subsidiaries in each year from 1997; what the terms of each contract were; and if he will make a statement. [101228]
Mr. Byrne: From the best information available, the Department has no such contracts.
Hampshire Probation Board
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the ability of the incoming Hampshire Probation Board to maintain continuity when dealing with (a) the implementation of new legislation to replace local probation boards with trusts, (b) budget pressures, (c) additional requirements for the contracting out of probation services and (d) promoting public trust and confidence in the ability of the service to protect the public and reduce reoffending rates; and if he will make a statement. [101899]
Mr. Sutcliffe: During the planning phase for the current board member and chair recruitment, the previous skills and competencies by which the existing boards were recruited have been extensively rewritten with a view to making them more relevant to an environment of Public Value Partnerships and a mixed economy. It was against these skills and competencies that all candidates were assessed and ultimately short listed.
The revised competencies focus on skills acquired within public, private and not for profit organisations—people management, financial management, strategic management, operational management and corporate management.
All successful board chairs have been invited to attend a two day induction event on corporate governance on 6 and 7 December 2006.
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