Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 20 February 2008
Wales
Departmental Retirement
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many of his Department's staff retired on the grounds of stress-related illness in each of the last three years. [187888]
Northern Ireland
IRA
7. Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment he has made of the threat from dissident IRA activists. [186575]
Mr. Woodward: The recent decision by the Chief Constable to alert the public to an increased risk of dissident republican activity demonstrates that a small number of individuals continue to live in the past.
The PSNI works tirelessly to thwart the activities of those involved in criminal activity and to bring them to justice for their crimes. I have every confidence in the PSNI’s ability to combat the threat they pose.
Real IRA
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment he has made of the activities of Real IRA. [186577]
Mr. Woodward: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave earlier to the hon. Member for South Antrim (Dr. McCrea).
Witness Intimidation
8. Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the incidence of witness intimidation in Northern Ireland. [186576]
Paul Goggins: Witness intimidation, whatever form it takes, is entirely unacceptable. There were 69 recorded offences related to witness intimidation in 2006-07—a 26 per cent. fall on the previous year.
Drug Smuggling
10. Mr. Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of levels of drug smuggling in Northern Ireland. [186578]
Paul Goggins: While Northern Ireland has the lowest rates of drugs misuse in the UK, we are not complacent and the Organised Crime Task Force, which I chair, will continue to tackle head on those who smuggle and deal in drugs.
Fuel Laundering
11. Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will consider bringing forward measures to introduce an offence of fuel laundering. [186579]
Paul Goggins: My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has responsibility for legislation relating to revenue offences.
We are working closely with HMRC in considering the creation of an absolute offence for fuel laundering to increase the powers available in tackling this crime.
Security
12. Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment he has made of the security situation in Northern Ireland. [186580]
Mr. Woodward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Bracknell (Mr. Mackay).
Crime Detection
13. Miss Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on crime detection rates in Northern Ireland. [186581]
Paul Goggins: The Police Service of Northern Ireland continue to improve its detection of crime through intelligence led, community based policing. The detection rate in Northern Ireland for 2006-07 is 23.6 per cent.—just above that for England and Wales.
On-the-runs
14. Mr. Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what Government policy is on “on-the-runs”; and if he will make a statement. [186582]
Mr. Woodward: The Government's policy on "on-the-runs" remains unchanged. We recognise the anomalous position of individuals who are still "on the run" for offences committed before the Belfast Agreement. This anomaly still needs to be addressed.
But, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Mr. Hain) made clear when he withdrew the Northern Ireland (Offences) Bill two years ago, this issue is one that needs to be considered in the broader context of how we deal with the legacy of past.
Departmental ICT
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of his Department's personal digital assistants have been (a) lost and (b) stolen in each of the last five years; and what the value of those items was. [185267]
Mr. Woodward: One personal digital assistant has been stolen in the last five years; a blackberry stolen in 2005 valued at £200.
Northern Ireland
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to strengthen ties between Northern Ireland and the rest of Great Britain. [185672]
Mr. Woodward: The constitutional position of Northern Ireland is set out in the Northern Ireland Act 1998.
Following the Belfast Agreement the British-Irish Council was established to promote positive, practical relationships among its Members: the British and Irish Governments, the devolved Administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. The British-Irish Council offers a forum for members to discuss, consult and reach agreement on co-operation on matters of mutual interest within the competence of the relevant Administrations.
Communities and Local Government
Community Development: Business
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget is for (a) 2007-08 and (b) each of the next four years of the local enterprise growth initiative. [187337]
John Healey: The budget for LEGI is £105 million for 2007-08, £105 million for 2008-09, £100 million for 2009-10 and £95 million for 2010-11. A decision on any funding beyond 2010-11 will be made as part of the next spending round. LEGI funding is now paid mainly through area based grant, plus additional capital sums, and settlements for each LEGI area have been published on the DCLG website.
Consent to Medical Treatment: Mentally Ill
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance her Department has issued to local
authorities on the circumstances under which social services may have intimate medical examinations performed on those with mental incapacities without the consent of guardians ad litem; under what authority such examinations are performed; and if she will make a statement. [186497]
Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 18 February 2008]: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Bury, South (Mr. Lewis) on 18 February 2008, Official Report, columns 284-85W.
Social Housing: North-east
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent steps the Government have taken to improve social housing in the north-east. [181550]
Mr. Iain Wright: Since 2003, the Government have been working with all local authorities to implement the Decent Homes programme. This is being done in conjunction with new arrangements for housing management through the Options Appraisal process. The initial target was that all council homes should be improved to an agreed standard by 2010, although in some local circumstances later dates have been agreed.
In the north-east region some authorities have retained their housing stock, while others have chosen to manage their stock through arms length management organisations (ALMO) or have transferred their stock to registered social landlords as part of the large scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) arrangements.
Progress towards achieving the Decent Homes standard in the north-east region among those authorities still owning properties (either Retention or ALMO) is as set out below. For LSVT authorities who have transferred their stock, the situation is that progress to the Decent Homes standard is an integral part of their business planning process and all RSLs in the north-east indicate that they are on target to achieve the Decent Homes standard by 2010.
Recent publication of the ‘New Performance Framework for Local Authorities and Local Authority Partnership’ presents a set of national indicators for use in the current local area agreement (LAA) negotiations. One of these potential indicators, NI158, usefully refers to the ‘percentage of decent council homes’.
| LA | Total LA stock | Non-decent at 1 April 2006 | Non-decent at 1 April 2007 | Percentage non-decent at 1 April 2007 | Target for 2007 |
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