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26 Nov 2008 : Column 2294W—continued
Sexual Offences: Young People
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) arrests and (b) convictions there have been of (i) men and (ii) women of each ethnicity in each region for sexually exploiting young people in each year since 2000; and if she will make a statement. [237281]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The information requested is not available.
Smuggling: Weapons
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many weapons the UK Border Agency prevented from entering the UK in 2007-08. [227245]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 15 October 2008]: The UK Border Agency was not formed in the financial year to which the question relates, therefore cannot provide the required information.
South East
Dr. Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department spent on services, broken down by type, in (a) Dartford Borough, (b) Kent Thameside, (c) the Thames Gateway, (d) Kent County Council area and (e) the South East region in each of the last five years. [222454]
Mr. Woolas: It is not possible to state exactly how much is spent on each service in each area. From April 2008 local authorities and their partners have greater flexibility, through Area Based Grant (“ABG”), to use central Government funding as they see fit to support the delivery of local, regional and national priorities in their areas. ABG is committed on a three year basis to provide stability and certainty for the receiving authorities.
The Home Office is signed up to these new funding arrangements, which were contained in the 2006 Local Government White Paper “strong and prosperous communities”. The Home Office also gave a public commitment in the Home Office Reform Plan to
“use the Local Area Agreement framework to join up our funding streams and simplify performance management systems for the front line”.
The annual Home Office contribution to ABG in each of the CSR07 years will be £76.5 million (resource)—in flat cash terms—comprising £61.1 million in respect of the Safer and Stronger Communities Fund and £15.4 million in respect of the Young People Substance Misuse Partnership Grant.
The capital element of SSCF will be paid to local authorities as non ring-fenced capital grant directly by the Home Office rather than through DCLG.
Speed Limits: Motorcycles
Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 18 November 2008, Official Report, column 269W, on speed limits: motorcycles, whether the ability to read rear licence plates on motorcycles is a requirement of the type approval process for average speed cameras. [239363]
Mr. Alan Campbell: It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.
Street Trading: Licensing
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many street pedlar licences were issued by the police in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [230779]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 27 October 2008]: I will write to the hon. Member.
Surveillance: E-mail
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many e-mails and other electronic communications data were sent in the UK in each of the last three years; how many were monitored by the authorities in each year; and how many were found to be relevant to (a) terrorist activity and (b) crime in each year. [225870]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 13 October 2008]: I will write to my right hon. Friend.
Terrorism: Detainees
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people suspected of offences under anti-terrorism legislation were held for more than 14 days before being charged in the last three years. [235537]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 13 November 2008]: The maximum 28 day period of pre-charge detention came into force on 25 July 2006 and statistics are collated from this date. From 25 July 2006, to date 11 individuals have been held for over 14 days in pre-charge detention. Of these 11, eight individuals were charged, three were released without charge. The statistics are shown in the following table:
| Period of detention (days) | Number of persons held | Charged | Released w/o charge |
Terrorism: London
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the level of injuries and financial damage to property resulting from the 7th July 2005 terrorist attacks in London. [164833]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 15 November 2008]: I will write to the hon. Member.
Travel Requirements: Fees and Charges
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate her Department has made of the effect on its levels of fee income from passports, visas and other immigration documents and services paid for by (a) British and (b) foreign nationals of the economic downturn; and what contingency plans her Department has made. [227531]
Mr. Woolas: The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) and UK Border Agency (UKBA) are the two Home Office service providers for passports, visas and other immigration document and services.
IPS monitors passport demand on a daily basis. In the 2008-09 financial year to date, demand and associated fee income have been at just outside the 5 per cent. forecast tolerance levels used by IPS for management purposes. Demand and income levels have not been formally re-forecast at this time but the situation will continue to be monitored closely.
UKBA regularly reviews its estimates of fee income from migrant applications.
Such reviews appraise a wide range of factors including the broader economic conditions and policy changes impacting application numbers. However, estimating the specific impact of, for example, an economic downturn is highly complex and depends not just on the scale of any downturn in the UK but also its scale in relation to the performance of other competitor economies.
UK Border Agency: Complaints
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints were investigated by the Complaints Audit Committee of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor in each of the last three years. [238866]
Jacqui Smith: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. and learned Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget for the Complaints Audit Committee of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor was in each of the last three years. [238868]
Jacqui Smith: The budget for the Complaints Audit Committee was £107,883 in each of the last three years.
UK Border Agency: Finance
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much of the UK Border Agency's budget for 2008-09 is expected to be spent (a) in the UK and (b) in each other country in which it operates. [227499]
Mr. Woolas: The only part of the UK Border Agency that spends outside of the United Kingdom is UK Visa's and the detail of its spending is currently subject to a confirmation process as a part of the Machinery of Government change process.
The UK Border Agency incurs some operational costs related to border activities outside of the United Kingdom but the budget (and spend) is internal to the United Kingdom.
UK Border Agency: Inspections
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the objectives of the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency are; [238869]
(2) when the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency plans to issue its first report; [238870]
(3) what the budget for the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency is for (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11. [238871]
Jacqui Smith: The Chief Inspector’s role is to monitor and report on the efficiency and effectiveness of the UK Border Agency. Section 48 of the Borders Act 2007 sets out a number of particular functions of the agency he should consider and make recommendations about. He will report to the Secretary of State once a calendar year in relation to these functions and at other times as requested by the Secretary of State. I expect him to issue his first annual report after the end of the current financial year. The Chief Inspector is working to a provisional budget of £0.8 million for this financial year, excluding his accommodation costs. His budget for 2009-10 and a provisional budget for 2010-11 will be set before the start of the next financial year.
UK Border Agency: Lost Property
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bolton South East of 12 November 2008, Official Report, column 1219W, on UK Border Agency: lost property, how much compensation has been paid to applicants where the UK Border Agency and its predecessors have accepted that they have misplaced or lost documents in each of the last five years. [238796]
Jacqui Smith: The information is not held in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bolton South East of 12 November 2008, Official Report, column 1219W, on UK Border Agency: lost property, how many principal files the UK Border Agency and its predecessors recorded as lost in each of the last five years. [238797]
Jacqui Smith: The information is not available in the format requested.
UK Border Agency: Working Hours
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many UK Border Agency (UKBA) enforcement operations have taken place on Saturdays or Sundays in each month of 2008, broken down by each region of the UKBA. [209085]
Mr. Woolas: I will write to the hon. Member.
Violence Against the Person
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of violence against the person were recorded (a) in total and (b) per 1,000 population in (i) England, (ii) the Kent Constabulary area and (iii) Ashford constituency in each year from 1997 to 2008. [236877]
Mr. Alan Campbell: I will write to the hon. Member.
War Crimes
Mr. Tom Clarke:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Buckingham of 14 October 2008, Official
Report, column 1072W, on crimes against humanity, how many people who have been suspected by the war crimes team of involvement in crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide are in the UK. [238493]
Mr. Woolas: The information requested could be obtained only by the detailed examination of individual case records, or by undertaking further inquiries, at disproportionate cost.
Waste Disposal: Public Places
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance her Department has issued on the implications for security of the provision of refuse bins in public places. [235018]
Mr. Coaker: I will write to the hon. Member.
West Mercia Police: Pay
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will meet members of the Police Federation from West Mercia Constabulary to discuss pay issues. [179748]
Mr. Coaker: I have discussed pay issues with the police staff associations, including the Police Federation, in the past and will continue to do so. In addition, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has met with those of her constituents who wished to see her to discuss police officer pay in her capacity as their local MP.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to answer question (a) 202221, (b) 202222, (c) 202224 and (d) 202223 on immigration procedures and Mrs. Hina Sajid, tabled on 23 April 2008; and if she will make a statement. [204619]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 May 2008]: Questions 202221 and 202223 were answered on 21 July 2008, Official Report, columns 962-63W. I responded to the remaining two questions on 25 November 2008. At the time of answering, Official Report references for these are not yet available.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to answer Question 165737, on self-protection measures for the Jewish community, tabled on 14 November 2007 by the hon. Member for Southend West; what the reason for the time taken to reply is; what steps she (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to answer written Parliamentary Questions within a working week of them being tabled; and if she will make a statement. [222359]
Mr. Alan Campbell: I will write to the hon. Member.
Lynne Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answers of 1 September 2008, Official Report, (a) column 1574W, on the National Identity Scheme Commissioner: finance and (b) column 1568W, on identity cards:
finance, when she plans to provide answers to questions 220246, 220293, 219766, 219785, 219763, 219761, 220294, 219754, 219765, 219771, 219794, 219764, 219762, 219756, 219757, 219768 and 219770 on the identity cards scheme tabled by the hon. Member for Birmingham Selly Oak on 14 and 15 July 2008. [224277]
Meg Hillier [holding answer 17 September 2008]: I replied to the hon. Member on the following dates:
Question 220246 was answered on 6 October 2008, Official Report, columns 145-46W.
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