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10 Sep 2007 : Column 1928W—continued
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Departments: Tribunals
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much was spent by his Department on industrial tribunals in the last 12 months. [153091]
Jonathan Shaw: In the financial year 2006-07, DEFRA settled two employment tribunals at a total cost of £11,087.
Flood Control
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will review the storage and use of pumps and flood barriers by the Environment Agency for emergency use in the event of a flood. [152883]
Mr. Woolas: During recent flooding events, the Environment Agency used a centralised register of equipment and manpower to facilitate inter-regional and inter-organisation aid. This register and its use will be assessed as part of lessons learned.
Flowers: Conservation
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department has taken since May 2005 to protect wildflower meadows and to encourage the planting of wildflowers. [154836]
Joan Ruddock: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 21 May 2007, Official Report, column 1035W to the hon. Member for Eastleigh (Chris Huhne).
Also, the recent addition of more wildflower species and habitat types, such as traditional orchards, to the list of priority species and habitats in the UK will bring benefits for wildflowers through targeted conservation action.
Fly Tipping
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what distinction Flycapture makes between (a) low-level fly-tipping by householders and (b) waste crime. [153727]
Joan Ruddock: All fly-tipping, small or large, is a crime. The Flycapture database, which was set up in 2004 by DEFRA, the Environment Agency and the Local Government Association, records the number of fly-tipping incidents dealt with by the Environment Agency and local authorities. Flycapture records incidents broken down by waste type, land type and size of fly-tip.
The categories for incidents by size are:
(i) single black bag
(ii) single item
(iii) car boot load or less
(iv) small van load
(v) transit van load
(vi) tipper lorry load
(vii) significant/multiple loads.
Flycapture does not record whether these fly-tips have been carried out by householders.
The Environment Agency deal with large, more serious fly-tipping incidents.
Nature Conservation: Severn Estuary
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he first received advice from English Nature recommending the Severn estuary as a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive; and when he expects to notify the European Commission of the Government’ intention to designate the Severn estuary as a Special Area of Conservation. [152925]
Joan Ruddock: My Department received advice from Natural England recommending the Severn Estuary as a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive on 9 October 2006. On 31 August 2007 the Government submitted the Severn estuary to the Commission as a candidate Special Area of Conservation for adoption as a Site of Community Interest. Once the site has been adopted by the Commission, expected to be in October 2008, the UK is required to designate it as a Special Area of Conservation as soon as possible.
Weeds Act 1959
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many fines have been levied for breaching the Weeds Act 1959 by preventing an authorised representative from entering a property to inspect for weeds in each year since 1997 for which figures are held. [153725]
Joan Ruddock: No fines have been imposed under the Weeds Act for preventing or obstructing an authorised representative from entering a property to inspect land since 1997.
The following number of enforcement notices have been issued since 2003:
Wild Boar
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made on formulating his Department’s policy on wild boar management. [154877]
Joan Ruddock: Current risk assessment work is examining the impacts of feral wild boar populations. This will inform the development of the Government’s policy in England, which we intend to finalise by the end of this year.
Wood: Procurement
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs who the new Timber Procurement Officer is at his Department. [151752]
Joan Ruddock: The Department is extending the remit of the timber procurement unit in its central procurement group to tackle wider EU and international forestry objectives, as well as the ongoing development and promulgation of the UK Government’ timber procurement policy. The structure and function of the reconstituted unit will be published on DEFRA’s website on 1 October 2007. The Department will be writing to key stakeholders including the Chair of the EAC later this month detailing the team’s structure and function.
Home Department
Asylum
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her most recent estimate is of the number of unsuccessful asylum claimants whose cases remain to be resolved; what steps have been taken to deal with such cases; what communication her Department has had with the unsuccessful claimants; how the cases of unsuccessful claimants who cannot be traced are to be dealt with; and if she will make a statement. [155102]
Mr. Byrne: At the Home Affairs Select Committee evidence session on 24 July, the Home Secretary stated that Lin Homer, the Chief Executive of the Border and Immigration Agency, would provide an update on the case resolution programme once reports can be produced on the programme in which Parliament and the wider public can have suitable confidence.
The specific circumstances of each individual will be considered on a case by case basis. Further information is therefore being solicited from individuals.
Our policy is to seek to enforce the removal of those who have no right to be here and who refuse to leave voluntarily. To achieve this we are increasing enforcement resource, recruiting additional frontline staff and seconding extra police officers; and will open a new 426 bed immigration removal centre at Gatwick next year.
Asylum: Iraq
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to her answer on 14 March 2007, Official Report, column 393W, on Asylum: Iraq, how many applications for asylum were made by Iraqi nationals in each year since 2000; and how many Iraqi nationals were (a) granted asylum, (b) granted leave to remain in the UK on other grounds and (c) deported in each year. [155098]
Mr. Byrne: Information on asylum applications, initial decisions and removals for nationals of Iraq is shown in the table. Initial decisions do not necessarily relate to applications made in the same period. Removal figures do not necessarily relate to decisions made in the same period.
Information on asylum applications, initial decisions and removals for nationals of Iraq are published quarterly and annually. Copies of these publications
are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
| Asylum applications( 1) received in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, initial decisions( 2) and asylum removals, 2000-06, nationals of Iraq | ||||||||||
| Principal applicants | ||||||||||
| Applications | Decisions | Removals( 3,4,5) | ||||||||
| Total | Total decisions | Grants of asylum | Grants of ELR | Grants of Hp( 6) | Grants of DL( 6) | Total refusals | Grants of ELR under backlog criteria( 7,8) | Non compliance refusals under backlog criteria( 7,9) | Total | |
| n/a = not applicable. (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (— = 0, * = 1 or 2). (2) Information is of initial decisions, excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions. Decision figures do not necessarily relate to applications received in the same period. Removal figures do not necessarily relate to decisions made in the same period. (3) Figures include enforced removals, persons departing voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them and persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration. (4) Removals since 2005 include persons who it is established have left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (5) Figures for 2001-03 have been estimated due to data quality issues. (6) Humanitarian Protection and Discretionary Leave replaced Exceptional Leave to Remain from 1 April 2003. (7) Cases decided under pragmatic measures aimed at reducing the pre 1996 asylum backlog. (8) May include a small number of cases where asylum has been granted. (9) May include a small number of cases where the application has been refused on substantive grounds. (10) May exclude some cases lodged at Local Enforcement Offices between January and March 2000. (11) not available (12) Provisional figures. | ||||||||||
Burglary: Greater London
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many domestic burglaries there were in each of the last five years in each London borough. [154895]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested is given in the following table.
| Domestic burglaries recorded in each London borough | |||||
| London borough | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 |
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