Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
22 Oct 2007 : Column 146Wcontinued
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice is given to police forces on actions to be taken when trafficked minors present themselves at police stations to seek assistance. [159109]
Mr. Coaker: Under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, the police have a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of any child in England and Wales, including trafficked children. Any child who presents at a police station should be referred to the relevant local authority childrens services for an assessment to be made of their needs to ensure that they are safeguarded and their welfare secured.
The victim care role of the police in child trafficking cases is contained in the Governments guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, Working Together To Safeguard Children, 2006. The police and childrens services should be informed whenever it is suspected that a child is a victim of trafficking. The multi-agency Trafficking Toolkit also provides guidance on dealing with trafficking. In addition, multi-agency supplementary guidance to the Working Together document, Safeguarding Children Who May Have Been Trafficked is soon to be published jointly by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Home Office. This was the subject of public consultation during the Summer.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her estimate is of the number of minors who were illegally trafficked into the UK in each of the last four years. [159110]
Mr. Coaker: All forms of human trafficking are illegal and are defined by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants) Act 2004. Trafficking involves the movement of individuals for the purpose of exploitation.
To date, the best available information in relation to the numbers of trafficked children is contained in the Home Office and BIA-commissioned Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) Scoping Project on Child Trafficking in the UK, published in June 2007. This report found 330 cases of suspected or confirmed child trafficking, from a dataset gathered by key agencies during the period March 2005 to December 2006.
Recognising the limitations of this snapshot report, the Government intend to examine further the continuing intelligence and data being gathered by the various agencies in relation to child trafficking. To this end, CEOP, on behalf of the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), will conduct a strategic threat assessment into the scale and nature of child trafficking into and within the UK.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many minors trafficked into the UK were (a) taken into social services or foster care and (b) subsequently deported from the UK in each of the last four years. [159111]
Mr. Coaker: The information requested is not currently recorded, but in line with our UK Action Plan on Tackling Human Trafficking, we are developing arrangements for data on human trafficking to be collected and recorded centrally.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) prosecuted for illegally trafficking minors into the UK in each of the last four years. [159112]
Mr. Coaker: The most recent data provided to the Home Office show that, for human trafficking overall, there have been a total of 66 convictions to date, all for trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, with a further 64 cases pending. These figures include any cases in which the victim was a child, although specific data on child victims are not yet collected or recorded centrally.
However, discussions are ongoing between the Home Office, UKHTC and CPS to further develop a system of data collection and central recording of all cases of human trafficking.
Mr. MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been successfully prosecuted for trafficking of women to work as prostitutes in each of the last five years. [158534]
Mr. Coaker: Following the commencement of dedicated trafficking offences in 2004, there have been 68 convictions for trafficking for sexual exploitation. The number of men prosecuted for trafficking for each year is as follows:
Number | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when she expects the Government to make a decision on whether to continue the restrictions placed on migrant workers entering the UK from Romania and Bulgaria; [158555]
(2) what factors are being considered as part of the Government's review of whether to retain current restrictions on Bulgarian and Romanian migrant workers entering the UK; [158557]
(3) what representations the Government have received from Romania and Bulgaria as part of its review of the restrictions placed on migrant workers entering the UK; [158558]
(4) which groups the Government have consulted as part of their decision making process on whether to retain restrictions on migrant workers from Romania and Bulgaria entering the UK; [158559]
(5) what meetings she has had with her counterparts in (a) Romania and (b) Bulgaria as part of the Government's ongoing review of their restrictions on migrant workers entering the UK. [158560]
Mr. Byrne: The Government committed to an announcement on the current restrictions in place on migrant workers from Romania and Bulgaria within 12 months of them coming into effect. This decision will be informed by a stock-take of the impact of A2 and A8 migration to the UK, looking at the needs of our labour market, the impact of the A8 accession and the positions adopted by other EU countries I invited contribution from members of the Migration Impacts Forum, the Border and Immigration Agency Regional Strategic Coordination Groups and the Illegal Working Stakeholder Group. The Romanian and Bulgarian governments were also invited to contribute, their evidence and views will be taken into account in developing the evidence base. Further, other organisations and the general public were invited to contribute through the BIA website homepage.
The Secretary of State has had no meetings with her counterparts in Romania and Bulgaria as part of the stock-take. However there have been ongoing meetings at official level to discuss the restrictions on migrant workers with Bulgarian and Romanian officials.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Romanian and Bulgarian migrant workers are employed in Britain; and what the change in numbers has been since accession of those countries to the UK. [158556]
Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 22 October 2007:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the number of Romanian and Bulgarian migrant workers who are currently employed in the United Kingdom, and what the changes in numbers have been since accession. (158556)
The attached table gives the rate and number of employed people of working age who were born in either Romania or Bulgaria, for the twelve month periods ending March 2005, 2006 and 2007.
When interpreting the figures in the table, it is important to bear in mind that the Annual Population Survey (APS) is not designed to cover everyone who is present in the UK. The survey may undercount the numbers of people who were born overseas. The reasons are set out in the table footnote.
As with any sample survey, estimates from the Annual Population Survey (APS) are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average response time to 999 calls made to the police in (a) Essex and (b) Southend was in each year since 1997. [156571]
Mr. McNulty: This information is not held centrally. This is a matter for the chief constable of Essex police.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what guidance her Department issues on the policing and marshalling of local events; and if she will make a statement; [159149]
(2) what representations she has received about the policing and marshalling of local events; [159150]
(3) what guidance is issued by her Department to chief police officers on the policing, marshalling and directing of traffic at local events; and what plans she has to change this guidance; [159153]
(4) if she will make it her policy to permit the training of stewards and marshals by professional and amateur organisers for the policing and direction of traffic at local events; and if she will make a statement. [159152]
Mr. Coaker: In August 2006, the Home Office published the Good Practice Safety Guide for small and sporting events taking place on the highway, roads and public spaces. The Guide sets out good practice for professional and amateur organisers of smaller scale local events, offering advice on the responsibilities of an organiser, carrying out risk assessments and the policing, marshalling and directing of traffic. The Guide includes guidance on the use of stewards and marshals covering training and briefing. The Guide, when used with other guidance produced by the Health and Safety Executive, helps to ensure that such events are as safe as possible for the public and participants and will be kept under review.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what total grant was allocated to each police authority in each year since 1997; [158852]
(2) how much funding was allocated per head of population for each police authority in England and Wales in each year since 1997. [158853]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested is set out in the following table.
The Government do not distribute grant to police authorities purely on the basis of population. The police funding formula uses a range of data relating to demographic and social characteristics to reflect the relative needs of each authority. Grant allocations also take into account the relative tax base of each authority. Grant allocations are stabilised by damping to limit year-on-year variations.
Police authority total government grant allocations | ||||||||
Police authority | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | ||||
Government grant( 1,2) | Resident population | Government Grant( 1,2) | Resident population | Government Grant( 1,2) | Resident population | Government Grant( 1,2) | Resident population | |
£m | M | £m | M | £m | M | £m | M | |
Next Section | Index | Home Page |