| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
7 Mar 2007 : Column 2029W—continued
Home Department
Animal Welfare: Protest
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action has been taken following the recent incidents of attacks on peoples' homes by animal terrorists. [125338]
Mr. Coaker: The Government condemn campaigns of intimidation, harassment and violence against individuals and law-abiding businesses and have in place a cross-departmental strategy to put an end to the animal rights extremist threat and to protect those targeted by it.
We have introduced tough new legislation, appointed a dedicated senior officer as national co-ordinator for domestic extremism and provided additional resources for the police to tackle the problem nationally. These steps have led to a reduction in unlawful activity and a number of successful prosecutions which have seen leading extremists receive lengthy custodial sentences.
The Government remain committed to eradicating the threat of animal rights extremism.
Antisocial Behaviour Orders
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average cost is of obtaining an antisocial behaviour order. [125789]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 6 March 2007]: A Home Office study carried out in 2004 revealed that the average cost of obtaining an antisocial behaviour order (ASBO) was £2,500. This is a substantial reduction compared to an earlier review of costs published in 2002, which indicated an average cost of £4,000 to £5,000.
Costs have fallen as a result of increased efficiency as practitioners become more familiar with ASBOs, and the introduction of orders on conviction which removes the need for separate hearings.
The study found that, overall, police and local authorities using ASBOs find them cost effective. The cost to society of not taking action against persistent antisocial behaviour is much higher.
Community Service Volunteers
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the timescale for provision of the revised Memorandum of Understanding between the Community Service Volunteers (CSV) and the Prison Services is; and what steps he has taken to ensure improved communications between CSV, the Prison Service and the probation services. [125144]
Mr. Sutcliffe:
A revised Memorandum of Understanding between the Prison Service, Offender Manager and Community Service Volunteers has now been completed
and is due to be issued subject to public protection measures being agreed. Officials from NOMS (including prison and probation service) and CSV have met and set in place tighter and improved communication protocols within the Memorandum of Understanding.
Convictions: EC Nationals
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many citizens of the post-2000 EU accession states have been convicted of criminal offences in the UK. [124265]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Data held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform court proceedings database do not hold information on the nationality of the defendant.
Crime: Lancashire
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many gun-related crimes there were in Lancashire in each of the last 10 years. [124876]
Mr. Coaker: Available data from 1996 up to and including 2005-06 are given in tables (a) and (b).
Figures for 1996 and 1997 include those involving air weapons.
| Table (a): Crimes recorded by the police in Lancashire( 1) in which firearms (excluding air weapons) were reported to have been used, 1996 to 2001-02 | |
| Number | |
| (1) Figures include offences involving the use of air weapons. (2) There was a change in counting rules for recorded crime on 1 April 1998. (3) Numbers of some recorded crimes may have been inflated by some police forces implementing the principles of the National Crime Recording Standard before 1 April 2002. | |
| Table (b): Crimes recorded by the police in Lancashire( 1) in which firearms (excluding air weapons) were reported to have been used, 2002-03 to 2005-06 | |
| Number | |
| (1) The National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in April 2002. Because of this, figures before and after that date are not directly comparable. (2) Some of the increase may be due to the change in the force’s recording practices. There was more than a three-fold increase in offences from 2003-04 to 2004-05. This increase is mainly due to offences involving imitation weapons. New, more explicit guidelines for the classification of weapons may have increased the recording of firearm offences in 2004-05, especially those committed with imitation weapons. | |
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is of the total cost of alcohol-influenced acts of vandalism in Lancashire in each of the last 10 years. [124878]
Mr. Coaker: No information is held centrally on the cost of alcohol-influenced vandalism in Lancashire.
Crimes of Violence
Mr. Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Government have taken to tackle gang-related violence since 1997. [122606]
Mr. Coaker: At the Prime Minister’s summit on guns and gangs on 22 February, a three-point plan was announced focusing on policing, powers and prevention. This work-plan includes a review of legislation relating to gangs, which will look at sentencing of juveniles, and gang membership as an aggravating factor in sentencing and other issues.
We are working closely with ACPO on the related issues of gangs, guns and drugs supply.
We are also working with the Metropolitan police on the development of an operational toolkit on gangs; developing a community-focused toolkit to provide advice to parents and young people; and working in conjunction with the Department for Education and Skills on a toolkit on gangs aimed as schools.
There are a number of wide-ranging national and local programmes that tackle gang-related issues:
The Youth Inclusion Programme established in 2000 provides tailor-made programmes for 13 to 16-year-olds identified locally (by police, schools, social services etc.) as engaged in crime, or being at most risk of offending, truancy, or social exclusion. In first three years of programme, arrest rates for the 50 young people considered to be most at risk of crime had been reduced by 65 per cent.
Safer Schools Partnerships were launched in 2002. With 370 police officers in selected schools in areas with high levels of street crime, the partnerships aim to reduce victimisation, and criminal and antisocial behaviour within the school and its community.
The Positive Futures scheme provides lifestyle, educational and employment opportunities for young people living in deprived areas. Between 2003 and 2006 £15 million of funding from the Home Office and £3 million from Football Foundation, plus individual funding from local supporters, was provided. Since 2000 over 26,000 children have been involved.
The Manchester Multi-Agency Gangs strategy is a partnership which helps young people exit gangs, working intensively with young people and their families.
The West Midlands Mediation and Transformation Service provides conflict resolution and support services, which have defused tension and aim to help young people exit gangs.
Other programmes such as the From Boyhood to Manhood Foundation focus on helping young men develop self-esteem. Boys are referred to the FBMF by local education authorities, special needs departments, youth-offending teams and social services departments. The FBMF helps them to get back on track through its day-programme of education and self-development.
Other local programmes include the “Defending Da Hood” programme in Waltham Forest to engage with hard-to-reach young people in order to discuss issues which are relevant to them, and raise awareness of crime.
We also support local initiatives through the Connected Fund, which was established in 2004. The sixth round was launched on 1 March and will accept applications from small community organisations working on gangs issues for grants up to £5,000. The closing date for bids is 12 April. We have also provided
project funding via the Government offices for the regions and directly to projects such as the Urban Concepts “Don't Trigger” anti-gun crime campaign.
Long-term prevention work includes parenting support to ensure that young people are given guidance in their developing years, volunteering programmes to help young people and provide alternative activities, and mentoring services to support young people.
Criminal Investigation
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will place in the Library the transcripts of interviews held during the recently completed investigation into the cases leading to convictions of Martin Wynn Davies, William Charles Hughes and Neil Smith; [122604]
(2) if he will place in the Library the custody records and schedules of items seized in the recently completed investigations into the cases leading to the convictions of Martin Wynn Davies, William Charles Hughes and Neil Smith. [123540]
Mr. Coaker: Material or information gathered during a police investigation are not subject to disclosure other than to the person involved and his or her legal representative or in connection with court proceedings.
Criminal Records Bureau: Disclosure of Information
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the results of Criminal Records Bureau searches on individuals are not transferable between organisations with the individual’s consent. [124291]
Joan Ryan [holding answer 1 March 2007]: Disclosures are primarily designed to be used by an employer at the point of recruitment for a particular position. Ultimately it is for each employer and not the CRB to decide whether a fresh disclosure should be applied for, bearing in mind their legal and other responsibilities and subject to any statutory requirements. There are a number of reasons why an employer may not wish to accept a disclosure that has been processed for a previous employment position, including:
The disclosure may not be at the right level (there are two different levels of CRB check; standard and enhanced);
The older a disclosure is the less reliable the information is, because the information it contains may not be up to date;
Information revealed through a CRB check reflects the information that was available at the time of its issue—a person may have committed a crime in the intervening period;
An organisation or employer may be required by law to carry out a fresh check against the Protection of Children Act list (PoCA) and/or the Protection of Vulnerable Adults Act list (POVA), thereby limiting the use of portability.
Domestic Violence
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is a waiting list for offenders sentenced by the courts with a condition of attendance at domestic abuse programmes. [123188]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Since April 2006 every probation area in England and Wales has delivered an accredited Domestic Violence Programme and demand for them is high. Normally offenders are expected to start a domestic violence programme within four weeks of the start of the order. In some areas offenders are waiting longer than this. Every offender waiting to start a programme is under the supervision of an offender manager who is responsible for monitoring and managing the risk posed by the offender and instituting public protection measures if necessary. There is a national target of 1,200 for the number of offenders in the community who successfully complete a domestic violence programme. This target will be exceeded by the end of the financial year—by the end of December there had already been 1,199 completions.
Domestic Violence: Lancashire
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reported incidents of domestic abuse there were in Lancashire in each of the last 10 years. [124957]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Home Office has only been collecting data on the number of reported domestic violence incidents by police force area since 2003-04. In Lancashire, the numbers are as follows:
| Number | |
Electronic Tagging
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will estimate the cost of the crimes which have been committed by offenders wearing electronic tags; and if he will make a statement. [124141]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Crimes recorded by all offenders wearing electronic tags are not currently reported on. We do not have an estimate of the cost of crimes committed by offenders wearing tags. To provide an informed estimate would incur disproportionate cost.
European Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Government will (a) sign and (b) ratify the Council of Europe convention on action against trafficking in human beings. [124715]
Mr. Coaker: On 22 January the Prime Minister announced the UK’s intention to sign the Council of Europe convention on human trafficking. The UK is currently examining how we implement the convention and cannot give a specific date for signature. However, having signalled our intention to sign we are now committed to implementing the convention and putting in place a framework which will provide real protection and support to all victims of trafficking.
Unlike the approach adopted by some of our Council of Europe colleagues the UK will not ratify the convention until all the changes to domestic legislation, processes and guidance are in place to ensure that we comply fully with its terms.
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the UK will sign the Council of Europe convention on action against trafficking in human beings. [124752]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 6 March 2007]: On 22 January the Prime Minister announced the UK’s intention to sign the Council of Europe convention on human trafficking. The UK is currently examining how we implement the convention and cannot give a specific date for signature. However, having signalled our intention to sign we are now committed to implementing the convention and putting in place a framework which will provide real protection and support to all victims of trafficking.
Unlike the approach adopted by some of our Council of Europe colleagues the UK will not ratify the convention until all the changes to domestic legislation, processes and guidance are in place to ensure that we comply fully with its terms.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2007, Official Report, columns 1946-7W, on human trafficking, if he will clarify on what date he expects to sign the Council of Europe convention on action against trafficking in human beings. [124361]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 5 March 2007]: On 22 January the Prime Minister announced the UK’s intention to sign the Council of Europe convention on human trafficking. The UK is currently examining how we implement the convention and cannot give a specific date for signature. However, having signalled our intention to sign we are now committed to implementing the convention and putting in place a framework which will provide real protection and support to all victims of trafficking.
Unlike the approach adopted by some of our Council of Europe colleagues the UK will not ratify the convention until all the changes to domestic legislation, processes and guidance are in place to ensure that we comply fully with its terms.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |