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7 Jan 2008 : Column 151W—continued
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will use his powers to designate regional chambers as public authorities for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [176520]
Mr. Wills: The Government are currently consulting on extending the coverage of the Freedom of Information Act to those bodies that carry out the function of a public nature and to contractors who provide services which are a function of that public authority. This consultation paper can be found at http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/cp2707.htm
This consultation will conclude on 1 February 2008. Following analysis of the responses, the Government will decide whether to make a section 5 order and, if so which bodies to consult about whether they, or organisations they represent, should be brought within the ambit of the Act. My Department will consider the case for regional chambers as part of the consultation process.
High Court: Birmingham
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to reply to the letter of 3 November from the hon. Member for Beaconsfield on a permanent high court in Birmingham. [174128]
Mr. Straw: I replied to the hon. Member on 10 December.
Hollesley Bay Prison: Prisoners Escape
Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how long on average prisoners who have absconded from HM Prison Hollesley Bay in the last six years have been at large. [169095]
Maria Eagle: Statistics are not available for the year 2002-03. The figures in the following table relate to the average number of days from abscond to recapture of those determinate sentence prisoners who absconded from Hollesley Bay in each of the past five years up to the end of September 2007. Averages such as these can be heavily skewed by one or two prisoners remaining at large for long periods. For example in 2003-04, four absconds were caught the day they absconded, and in total 28 were recaptured within a month.
| Average time at large | |
| (1 )Figures recorded for 2007-08 are provisional and subject to change. | |
Housing: Carbon Emissions
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what records the Land Registry keeps of the number and location of zero carbon homes. [176373]
Mr. Wills: Her Majesty’s Land Registry does not hold any records relating to zero carbon rating homes. The strategy to make all new homes zero carbon by 2016 comes under the jurisdiction of the Department for Communities and Local Government. Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs may collate statistics relating to homes qualifying for zero carbon tax relief through the monitoring of stamp duty land tax, following the introduction of the Stamp Duty Land Tax (Zero-Carbon Homes Relief) Regulations on 7 December 2007.
Immigration
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much funding has been allocated to Lord Goldsmith’s citizenship review. [175016]
Mr. Wills: The allocated funding for Lord Goldsmith’s citizenship review is £200,000 excluding staff costs. Lord Goldsmith is not receiving any remuneration for undertaking this review.
Land Registry
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reasons the Land Registry is introducing new triggers to require compulsory land registration. [176518]
Mr. Wills: Section 5 of the Land Registration Act 2002 confers power on the Lord Chancellor, exercisable by statutory instrument, to prescribe additional events that trigger compulsory first registration of title to land. Land Registry has recently issued a consultation paper, on behalf of the Lord Chancellor, seeking views on the introduction of two new trigger events, aimed at making further progress towards a comprehensive land register. The events proposed are the appointment of a new trustee and the partition of land among trust beneficiaries. The consultation period runs from 19 November 2007 to 29 February 2008. No decision will be made about the introduction of new triggers until all responses to the consultation have been evaluated.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps the Land Registry is taking to prevent the online register from being (a) abused and (b) accessed illegally. [176522]
Mr. Wills:
Land Registry constantly keeps such matters under review and is continuously reviewing the security control and access restrictions in place for its
internal and external online systems. Land Registry withdrew access to documents available electronically via Land Registry Online on 5 November 2007 and believes this to be a positive step that will help to alleviate the risk of misuse. It would be inappropriate to give details of the specific measures Land Registry has in place to combat abuse and illegal access or those it is considering introducing. Land Registry does have in place a robust anti-fraud strategy and all measures in place are regularly reviewed and revised, with a view to strengthening the protection they provide. Land Registry is working with the police and other organisations to refine its strategy and to develop its expertise in this area.
Land Registry Direct
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether (a) HM Revenue and Customs, (b) the Valuation Office Agency and (c) the Valuation and Lands Agency are business users of the Land Registry Direct service. [176331]
Mr. Wills: Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the Valuation Office Agency have business user accounts with Land Registry Direct. The Valuation and Lands Agency does not.
Legal Advice
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to increase funding allocated to legal advice for travellers on planning issues. [176502]
Maria Eagle: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) has no plans to do so.
Legal Aid Scheme: ICT
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the value is of the IT contract for a new online reporting system for legal aid claims by solicitors; [175636]
(2) which company was awarded the contract to supply a new online reporting system for legal aid claims by solicitors; [175637]
(3) whether the online reporting system for legal aid claims by solicitors is operational. [175638]
Maria Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave to the hon. Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) on 5 December 2007, Official Report, column 1260W.
Legal Aid: Hercules Aircraft
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) who informed the press that the Australian Government would be paying the legal expenses of Kellie Merritt at the forthcoming inquest into deaths of service personnel on the Hercules aircraft shot down in Iraq; [175285]
(2) if he will make it his policy to provide legal aid and assistance to the British families at the forthcoming inquest into the deaths of personnel on the Hercules aircraft shot down in Iraq. [175286]
Maria Eagle: Representation at inquests is outside of the usual scope of the legal aid scheme as set out in the Access to Justice Act 1999 and other documents laid before Parliament. However, it can be made available in exceptional circumstances. There are published criteria that help determine whether a case is exceptional. Applications for exceptional funding must first be made to the Legal Services Commission (LSC). The Ministry understands that applications, in relation to the inquests into the deaths of personnel on the Hercules XV179 shot down in Iraq in January 2005, are currently being considered by the LSC. Only where the LSC considers that the exceptional criteria are met will the applications be passed to the Ministry of Justice for final determination. The Government have not advised the press about any representation of other parties at those inquests.
Legal Services Commission
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what payments have been made by (a) his Department and its predecessor and (b) the Legal Services Commission to the Community Legal Partnership in each of the last four years. [176330]
Maria Eagle: The following table gives the payments made by the Legal Services Commission (LSC) to the Community Law Partnership. The LSC has no dealings with the Community Legal Partnership.
| £ | |
Members' Correspondence
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many letters his Department and its predecessors received from hon. Members and Peers in each session of Parliament since 1997. [174931]
Bridget Prentice: The information, which is also available in the Library of the House, is listed as follows.
| Calendar year | Number of letters received from MPs/Peers |
The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members’ and Peers’ correspondence. Information relating to 2007 will be published as soon as it has been collated.
Minimum Wage
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many London-based staff are employed by his Department on the national minimum wage. [175966]
Mr. Wills: No member of staff employed by the Ministry of Justice in London is paid on (or below) the national minimum wage.
Ministerial Duties: Public Sector
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which Minister has responsibility for public sector information. [176497]
Mr. Wills: I am the Minister responsible for the Office of Public Sector Information. The Department for Constitutional Affairs, the predecessor to the Ministry of Justice, took over responsibility for public sector information from the Cabinet Office on 31 October 2006.
New Hall Young Offenders Institution: Injuries
Dr. Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what injuries were incurred by girls held in New Hall Young Offenders Institution during control and restraint in each month in (a) 2006 and (b) 2007. [173467]
Maria Eagle: There were two control and restraint incidents at New Hall that led to injuries, as follows:
January 2006—sore right wrist; and
February 2007—mark on left hand side of face.
Offenders: Crimes of Violence
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners are serving indeterminate sentences for public protection for (a) sexual assault, (b) sexual assault against a child, (c) sexual activity with a child and (d) arson. [175083]
Mr. Hanson: A research study into prisoners received into prisons in England and Wales under Indeterminate Sentences for Public Protection (IPP) between April 2005 and March 2006, showed that (a) 13 offenders were given an IPP for sexual assault, (b) 14 offenders were given an IPP for sexual assault of a child under 13, (c) 14 offenders were given an IPP for sexual activity with a child and (d) 44 offenders were given an IPP for arson. These figures were published in chapter 11 of Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2005, a copy of which can be found in the House of Commons Library.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems and data returns from prison establishments which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Personal Records: Data Protection
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department has taken to protect the personal data on members of the public which it holds. [171415]
Mr. Wills: I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 21 November 2007, Official Report, column 1179. The review by the Cabinet Secretary and security experts is looking at procedures within departments and agencies for the storage and use of data. A statement on Departments' procedures will be made on completion of the review. An interim progress report on the review was published on 17 December by the Cabinet Office through a written ministerial statement, column 98WS.
The Ministry of Justice has procedures and guidance covering security, information security and data protection designed to identify and control the risk of the unauthorised release of personal data taking place. They include:
Ensuring our sites are physically secure and protected from unauthorised access;
Ensuring our employees are reliable through checks on background;
Providing guidance to staff on general security with separate guidance on IT security and data protection issues;
Procedures for assessing IT systems;
We also have systems for monitoring and checking compliance.
These policies and procedures extend to our contracted IT suppliers.
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