| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
26 Jun 2007 : Column 715W—continued
Departments: Surveys
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff surveys his Department has undertaken in the last 12 months; and at what total cost. [145261]
Mr. Byrne: Home Office Headquarters and the Border and Immigration Agency (BIA) have not conducted a staff survey since 2005.
The Criminal Records Bureau conducted one staff survey in 2006 at a cost of £24,120.
Identity and Passport Service conducted one staff survey in April/May this year at a cost of £65,823.
HM Prison Service conducted one staff survey in November/December 2006 at a cost of £25,000.
Departments: Travel
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on first class travel in each year since 2004. [137025]
John Reid: The Department’s accounting system does not hold information on expenditure on first class travel separately. A complete run of such information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The Department expects all official travel to be carried out by the most efficient and economic means available, taking into account the cost of travel and subsistence, savings in official time, management benefit, and the needs of staff with disabilities.
Domestic Violence: Police Cautions
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the use of cautions in domestic violence cases usually defined by prosecutors as common assault. [145065]
Mr. Coaker: There is not a specific indicator of the effectiveness of the use of cautions in domestic violence cases. However, our view is that cautions are generally not a suitable alternative to charging in cases of domestic violence. They are only used in cases where, with due consideration to all of the evidence and the relevant charging criteria, there is no other alternative.
Entry Clearances
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for indefinite leave to remain received before 31 December 2006 have not yet been determined; what the principal reasons are for delay in such cases; and if he will make a statement. [140441]
Mr. Byrne: In respect of cases involving unresolved asylum claims, in accordance with information provided to the Home Affairs Committee on 19 February 2007 by the chief executive of the Border and Immigration Agency, periodic progress updates will be provided.
In respect of non-asylum cases, as of 31 May 2007 there are about 17,600 outstanding non-asylum indefinite leave to remain applications that were received in the Border and Immigration Agency prior to 31 December 2006. These applications include those submitted under a range of immigration categories.
On the whole, these cases are not straightforward and require additional consideration. The aforementioned data are not provided under National Statistics protocols. They have been derived from local management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change.
Harmondsworth Detention Centre
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the cost of the damage to Harmondsworth Immigration Detention Centre during the disturbances on 29 November. [109676]
Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of the repairs and refurbishment of Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) was following the fire earlier this year; and whether the centre is planned to remain in use as an IRC. [145719]
John Reid: An initial independent review of the condition of Harmondsworth IRC has estimated that the sum of £7 million plus VAT will be required to fully repair the damage to the Centre ‘as built’.
The Centre is fully insured for riot and material damage and business interruption cover. The damage to the Centre forms part of the total claim and is fully covered by insurance minus the deductible (policy excess).
Hunting
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what his policy is on the enforcement of the Hunting Act 2004; [145171]
(2) what recent meetings he has held with (a) Chief Police Officers, (b) the Secretary of State for Justice, (c) the Crown Prosecution Service and (d) others on the enforcement of the Hunting Act 2004. [145172]
Mr. Coaker: The Government are fully committed to enforcing the hunting ban. The Hunting Act is discussed as appropriate in meetings which the Home Office has with the police, prosecuting authorities, other Government Departments and other interested stakeholders.
Immigrants: Interpreters
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of interpreters for immigration services at St Judes, Plymouth in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007. [142467]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 15 June 2007]: The Border and Immigration Agency only conducts interviews in that area in the course of operational enforcement visits or when visiting dispersed asylum seekers.
The information requested could, therefore, only be provided as a result of examination of individual case files at disproportionate cost, and would as a result of the use of telephone services still be incomplete.
Immigration Controls
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations his Department has received on the proposed new points-based system of immigration from community groups who will be affected. [134354]
Mr. Byrne: As part of the consultation for the points-based system, my Department has conducted formal research and face to face engagement with individuals and community group representatives across industry and other sectors. A total of 517 written responses were received. We continue to engage with groups representative of those affected by the points-based system. Informal consultation continues at a national regional level as we continue to develop the points-based system ahead of roll out.
Immigration: Females
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance is given to case workers on granting leave to remain to vulnerable women who have been (a) trafficked from and (b) raped in their country of origin; and if he will make a statement. [145879]
Mr. Byrne: Where a female victim of trafficking or rape claims to fear persecution we will carefully and sensitively consider the application on its individual merits under the UK’s obligations to the 1951 Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights. Rape and trafficking are forms of harm which may constitute a form of persecution. This is specifically referred to in the guidance given to case workers. Where a woman is able to demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution, she will be granted protection. Guidance for decision makers on considering asylum and human rights claims and granting leave is provided in Assessing the Claim, Humanitarian Protection and Discretionary Leave asylum instructions, which can be found on the Border and Immigration Agency website at:
Immigration: Romania
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many expert level meetings took place between his Department’s officials and the (a) Romanian National police and (b) Romanian Immigration Service in the last 12 months. [144069]
Joan Ryan: No central records are kept of such meetings, but they will take place frequently and routinely, both on a bilateral and a multilateral basis.
National Black Police Association: Finance
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Department expects to complete its analysis of the auditor’s final report on funding for the National Black Police Association; if he will place copies of the auditor’s final report in the Library; and if he will make a statement. [145438]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 25 June 2007]: The Home Office auditor’s final report has been analysed resulting in 20 separate recommendations. It would be inappropriate to make a statement at this time, as the matter remains ongoing.
Home Office audit reports are internal documents and not for publication because they are part of Home Office business and are commercially sensitive.
Offenders: Deportation
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals were successfully deported due to committal of a criminal offence in the UK following completion of their prison term in each of the last five years. [124234]
John Reid: On 14 June the chief executive of the Border and Immigration Agency wrote to the Home Affairs Committee to provide the most recent information available on the deportation of foreign national prisoners. In this letter the director reported that 2784 foreign national prisoners were deported or removed in the financial year 2006-07. A copy of this letter is available from the Library of the House.
Statistics on the deportation of foreign nationals were last published in 2002. This data are available through the Home Office’s Research Development and Statistics website at:
Published information on persons removed as a result of deportation action has not been available from 2003 onwards due to data quality issues. The Border and Immigration Agency is putting in place new systems to improve its data collection systems for the future in this area.
Off-Road Vehicles (Registration) Bill
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what discussions he has had with the Association of Chief Police Officers on the implementation of the Off-Road Vehicles (Registration) Bill if enacted in its current form; [144342]
(2) if he will make an assessment of the likely implications for police forces of implementation of the Off-Road Vehicles (Registration) Bill if enacted in its current form; and if he will make a statement. [144344]
Mr. Coaker:
Officials in my Department have discussed the Off-Road Vehicles (Registration) Bill, with colleagues in ACPO as well as other Government
Departments. In particular, Home Office discussions have focused on any potential impact to the police following implementation if enacted in its current form.
It is difficult to say with great certainty what impact such a Bill would have in practice, as an assessment of non-compliance has not been made. However initial estimates would suggest that additional burdens on the police would be inevitable and costly. ACPO have estimated that at a minimum for ad-hoc enforcement which does not include costs to the Crown Prosecution Service or HMCS, could be in the region of £50 million over three years, based on investigating approximately 300,000 vehicles a year. This does not include the costs of mounting an enforcement operation, but is based on the time it would take an officer to deal with the offence, such as dealing with the offender, arranging recovery of the vehicle and supervising the event. It also includes any necessary paperwork and officer time to prepare for court if that is applicable.
Without a full and proper assessment of a registration scheme and its likely impact on the police and given that there is a range of existing legislation available to the police to deal with this nuisance which is effective and being used, the Home Office strongly opposes the introduction of this particular private Member's Bill.
Passports: Fees and Charges
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of a passport was in each of the last 10 years; and what the reason was for each change. [144033]
Joan Ryan: The following table shows the fee for a standard passport at the end of each year:
| £ | |
The fees were increased in March 1998 to take account of inflation. Fees were increased in December 1999 to pay for service improvements, including the opening of an additional passport office, and a range of customer service enhancements including the creation of 24/7 call centres and extended public office opening hours, following the passport crisis that year, and to recover cost deficits incurred during the crisis.
Fees were increased in November 2002 in order to complete the recovery of deficits incurred in 1999 and to take account of increases in the cost of consular assistance to British nationals travelling abroad.
Fees were increased in October 2003 to pay for improved anti fraud measures and the introduction of the secure delivery service for passports.
Increases in December 2005 and October 2006 were a two stage increase to pay for the development and introduction of biometric passports and further improvements in security, including interviews for adult first time applicants.
The increase announced by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for October 2007 is to pay for increased costs in providing consular assistance to British nationals travelling abroad.
Police Air Support Units
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers are employed in police air support units in each police authority area. [145439]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 25 June 2007]: The available data are given in the following table. The officers in the table are predominantly employed either as pilots, ground crew, air observers or in administrative functions connected with air support, as well as other supporting roles. A number of police staff are also involved in these roles, but are not included in the table.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |