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19 Oct 2007 : Column 1347W—continued


Departments: Internet

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many websites her Department operates; how many it operated at 1 January 2005; and what the estimated annual cost has been of running her Department’s websites in the last five years. [157921]

Jim Fitzpatrick: Current figures for the Department for Transport and its executive agencies are as follows:

The Department is currently undertaking a programme of website rationalisation under the Transformational Government Agenda. Figures for central Government Department websites were published in January this year in the Transformational Government Annual Report 2006 as part of the departmental website review (http://www.cio.gov.uk/transformational_government/annual_report_2006/). Updated figures were subsequently reported in the National Audit Office Government on the Internet Report published in July 2007. (http://www.governmentontheweb.org/access_reports.asp)

There is no central list of departmental sites that operated in January 2005 and to obtain such a retrospective list could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Estimated running costs for departmental sites where available, were previously provided to the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs. May) on 15 May 2007, Official Report, columns 648-49W. No additional information for running costs for the last five years is available.


19 Oct 2007 : Column 1348W

Driving: Licensing

Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which (a) identification documents and (b) driving licences are required to receive a full EU driving licence. [159664]

Jim Fitzpatrick: Driving licences issued in the UK conform to the format and standard laid out in the second EC directive on driver licensing (91/439/EEC) and are considered to be EU driving licences.

All applicants for a first driving licence must provide evidence of identity. This is usually a passport but, in instances where a passport is not available, alternative documentation will be considered. If there is any doubt concerning the applicant's identity, a licence will not be issued.

The holder of a full driving licence issued elsewhere within the EU/European economic area may apply to exchange their licence for a full UK licence. Driving licences from the following countries may also be exchanged: Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Faroe Islands, Falkland Islands, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe. Any application to exchange a licence must be accompanied by evidence of identity.

I am unable to comment on the arrangements concerning identification checking for the issue of driving licences elsewhere in the European Union.

Internet: Standards

Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the website Arrive Alive. [159488]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Arrive Alive website's main aim is to promote the Arrive Alive programme to schools to deliver important road safety messages to schools and other organisations.

There is no assessment made on the effectiveness of the Arrive Alive website. However, during the months from 30 September 2006 to 30 September 2007 there were 50,877 visits to the website, which equate to 139 average daily visits. This shows a positive interest in the programme.

Railway Network

Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what her Department's latest estimate is of the cost of constructing a high speed rail line between London and Scotland via (a) the north-east and (b) the west midlands and the north-west. [160042]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The capital cost of constructing a new high speed railway line between London and Scotland is likely to be some £30 billion, whichever route is taken. Presently there is no justification case for such expenditure. Considerable improvements are already being made to the West Coast Main Line to accelerate Anglo-Scottish journey times for introduction in December 2008.


19 Oct 2007 : Column 1349W

Road Safety Campaigns

Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 21 November 2006, Official Report, columns 42-43, on road safety campaigns, how many hits the www.hedgehogs.gov.uk site received in each month since October 2006; and what further assessment of the effectiveness of the website has been conducted since November 2006. [159487]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The number of hits (total number of successful requests for pages) the hedgehogs website has received since October 2006 is set out in the table. As provided in November 2006, I have also enclosed the figures for the distinct number of hosts served.

As mentioned previously, the hedgehogs website is one medium within a broad mix of media channels such as online advertising, PR, partnership marketing and road safety materials used to raise awareness about road safety to children. Our advertising drives children to the hedgehogs site to engage them in more comprehensive road safety information in a fun and engaging way.

Visitor numbers to the site remain encouraging and given the growing proportion of children moving to the internet as their primary medium, we shall continue to use online advertising and web presence to help to boost road safety awareness among children.

Month Hits( 1) Visitors( 2)

2006

November

161,435

26,053

December

148,040

47,868

2007

January

123,701

21,668

February

142,438

36,557

March

152,926

33,828

April

121,144

26,101

May

155,984

30,867

June

149,293

29,568

July

136,569

33,880

August

104,979

27,211

September

123,131

27,325

(1) Total number of successful requests for pages.
(2) Number of distinct hosts served.

Home Department

Crime: Children

Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many crimes were committed by children in Cambridgeshire in each of the last 10 years, broken down by type of offence. [158805]

Mr. McNulty: The information requested is not available centrally. Details of the age of the offender are not collected in the recorded crime statistics.

Departments: Parliamentary Questions

Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will place in the Library copies of (a) written guidance and instructions
19 Oct 2007 : Column 1350W
provided to officials in her Department who draft parliamentary answers and (b) the declaration required to be made by such officials on submitting drafts for ministerial approval; and if she will make a statement. [156848]

Mr. McNulty: I have arranged for the relevant documents to be placed in the Library of the House.

Lancashire Constabulary: Manpower

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police are employed in Lancashire; and how many there were employed in 1997. [158654]

Mr. McNulty: The number of full-time equivalent police officers (rounded to the nearest whole number, excluding those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave) was 3,566 as at 31 March 2007. As at 31 March 1997 the figure was 3,248 on the same basis.

Metropolitan Police: Emergency Calls

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if she will make a statement on the performance of the Metropolitan police emergency call system; [155640]

(2) what assessment she has made of the performance of the Metropolitan police emergency call system on 20 July 2007; [155643]

Mr. McNulty: In 2005-06, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary undertook a baseline inspection of emergency and non-emergency contact management systems for the police forces of England and Wales. Under this review, the Metropolitan police performance was classified as ‘Fair’. There has not been a similar or specific assessment of the performance of the Metropolitan police's emergency and non-emergency contact management system for 21 July 2005 nor for 20 July 2007.

Police

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which (a) local authorities and (b) local authority wards comprise each police force basic command unit. [158130]

Mr. McNulty: A spreadsheet has been produced which details, for each local authority ward area, which police basic command unit and local authority area the ward falls within. Due to the volume of data in the spreadsheet, a copy of this will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

Police: Festivals and Special Occasions

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will make a statement on the operation of the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme; what progress has been made in extending its remit to cover the training of stewards and road marshals for local events; and if she will make a statement. [159151]


19 Oct 2007 : Column 1351W

Mr. McNulty: Community Safety Accreditation Schemes enable chief officers to designate limited powers under the Police Reform Act to employees of approved organisations who contribute towards community safety. These powers include the power to regulate traffic.

It is a matter for the chief officer to decide the extent and content of the training undertaken by the employee(s) in order to be accredited and designated particular powers, and it is the responsibility of the employer to ensure its employee(s) receive that training.


19 Oct 2007 : Column 1352W

Police: Manpower

Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were in each police force in each year since 1997. [158855]

Mr. McNulty: The information is shown in the following table.


19 Oct 2007 : Column 1353W

19 Oct 2007 : Column 1354W
Police officer strength( 1) (FTE)( 2) by police force as at 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2007
Police force 1997( 3) 1998 1999 2000 2001( 4) 2002 2003( 5) 2004( 5) 2005( 5) 2006( 5) 2007( 5)

Avon and Somerset

2,989

2,976

2,999

2,934

2,994

3,096

3,149

3,401

3,384

3,389

3,375

Bedfordshire

1,094

1,079

1,041

1,028

1,036

1,069

1,106

1,181

1,215

1,198

1,185

Cambridgeshire

1,302

1,291

1,274

1,237

1,296

1,362

1,384

1,400

1,402

1,430

1,381

Cheshire

2,046

2,042

2,071

2,011

2,002

2,059

2,119

2,177

2,186

2,174

2,192

Cleveland

1,459

1,483

1,416

1,404

1,407

1,461

1,582

1,687

1,676

1,677

1,713

Cumbria

1,144

1,164

1,126

1,084

1,048

1,100

1,140

1,222

1,232

1,230

1,244

Derbyshire

1,791

1,772

1,759

1,777

1,823

1,848

2,003

2,070

2,070

2,046

2023

Devon and Cornwall

2,865

2,962

2,887

2,841

2,934

3,053

3,202

3,283

3,369

3,493

3,476

Dorset

1,284

1,310

1,279

1,306

1,354

1,381

1,416

1,433

1,450

1,485

1,492

Durham

1,461

1,515

1,568

1,558

1,595

1,614

1,651

1,685

1,718

1,699

1 ,683

Essex

2,961

2,928

2,891

2,806

2,897

2,946

2,989

3,098

3,190

3,279

3,297

Gloucestershire

1,133

1,104

1,104

1,114

1,173

1,183

1,227

1,284

1,291

1,289

1,303

Greater Manchester

6,922

6,949

6,810

6,795

6,909

7,217

7,343

8,042

8,041

7,959

7,887

Hampshire

3,452

3,490

3,473

3,419

3,438

3,480

3,668

3,706

3,725

3,707

3,796

Hertfordshire

1,759

1,740

1,724

1,767

1,922

1,825

1,957

2,086

2,104

2,126

2,159

Humberside

2,045

2,021

1,974

1,932

1,917

2,058

2,105

2,213

2,230

2,224

2,227

Kent

3,260

3,251

3,201

3,204

3,319

3,355

3,487

3,576

3,586

3,599

3,664

Lancashire

3,248

3,257

3,245

3,179

3,255

3,304

3,339

3,550

3,551

3,583

3,566

Leicestershire

1,949

1,983

1,993

1,993

2,032

2,100

2,114

2,277

2,283

2,250

2,225

Lincolnshire

1,196

1,191

1,140

1,115

1,202

1,198

1,221

1,228

1,221

1,213

1,221

London, City of

859

825

778

732

703

764

808

853

876

869

854

Merseyside

4,230

4,216

4,211

4,085

4,081

4,125

4,099

4,122

4,317

4,269

4,413

Metropolitan Police

26,677

26,094

26,073

25,485

24,878

26,223

27,984

29,735

30,710

30,536

30,710

Norfolk

1,432

1,430

1,381

1,381

1,420

1,468

1,499

1,510

1,544

1,557

1,565

Northamptonshire

1,177

1,169

1,137

1,117

1,157

1,214

1,210

1,239

1,267

1,317

1,281

Northumbria

3,677

3,769

3,840

3,788

3,857

3,929

3,943

4,040

4,048

3,983

3,917

North Yorkshire

1,338

1,367

1,337

1,283

1,305

1,417

1,444

1,529

1,543

1,636

1,654

Nottinghamshire

2,323

2,323

2,225

2,204

2,275

2,330

2,411

2,484

2,502

2,477

2,410

South Yorkshire

3,159

3,182

3,168

3,163

3,197

3,199

3,183

3,279

3,265

3,255

3,254

Staffordshire

2,211

2,292

2,238

2,170

2,129

2,133

2,202

2,266

2,280

2,272

2,288

Suffolk

1,174

1,186

1,190

1,145

1,133

1,203

1,253

1,304

1,313

1,300

1,342

Surrey

1,620

1,608

1,662

1,785

2,066

1,992

1,906

1,913

1,915

1,922

1,914

Sussex

3,085

2,996

2,847

2,822

2,855

2,893

2,989

3,039

3,044

3,092

3,077

Thames Valley

3,695

3,776

3,748

3,740

3,703

3,762

3,833

4,034

4,114

4,229

4,197

Warwickshire

926

924

908

900

926

969

997

1,008

1,011

1,032

1,059

West Mercia

2,040

2,010

2,025

1,887

1,951

2,018

2,256

2,355

2,367

2,351

2,400

West Midlands

7,113

7,156

7,321

7,194

7,423

7,681

7,751

7,887

8,056

8,097

8,173

West Yorkshire

5,209

5,155

4,982

4,822

4,815

4,889

5,029

5,275

5,631

5,644

5,655

Wiltshire

1,154

1,156

1,151

1,118

1,120

1,157

1,158

1,217

1,222

1,219

1 ,204

Dyfed-Powys

1,005

1,002

1,026

1,040

1,055

1,132

1,149

1,160

1,174

1,182

1,177

Gwent

1,243

1,233

1,247

1,264

1,274

1,333

1,341

1,372

1,438

1,467

1,493

North Wales

1,369

1,396

1,391

1,403

1,444

1,506

1,539

1,603

1,652

1,617

1,591

South Wales

2,976

2,986

2,981

2,926

3,154

3,222

3,239

3,279

3,281

3,263

3,297

Total England and Wales

125,051

124,756

123,841

121,956

123,476

127,267

131,426

137,105

139,491

139,631

140,032

(1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items.
(2) Full-time equivalent excludes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave
(3) Boundary changes on 1 April 1996 transferred resources for the policing of the Rhmney Valley from South Wales Police to Gwent Police.
(4) Boundary changes on 1 April 2000 transferred some resources from the Metropolitan Police to Essex, Hertfordshire and Surrey police forces.
(5) Comparable strength (excludes those on career breaks, or maternity/paternity leave). The Police Numbers Task Force (2001) recommended that a clear presentation was made of the numbers of staff employed by police forces including those seconded into the force and those on any type of long or short term absence. These new calculations were first used in 2003, and are not comparable with data prior to March 2003. The data from 2003 onwards used here are termed comparable because they have been calculated on the old basis to allow comparison.

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