| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
18 Dec 2008 : Column 946W—continued
Departmental Temporary Employment
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Solicitor-General with reference to the answer of 28 October 2008, Official Report, columns 984-86W, on Law Officers' Department: temporary employment, how many staff were recruited through each company in each year; and for how long on average staff recruited through these companies worked for the Department in each year. [242310]
The Solicitor-General: The information requested is not recorded centrally by any of the Law Officer's Departments. Therefore it could be obtained only by the extraction of every contract for each temporary member of staff employed over the last five years and would incur disproportionate cost.
Proceeds of Crime: Civil Proceedings
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General what consideration the Crown Prosecution Service gave to including reference to the use of civil recovery powers in its Memorandum of Understanding with the Association of Chief Police Officers on pursuing criminal assets. [243799]
The Solicitor-General: A service level agreement (SLA) between the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), dealing with applications under the Proceeds of Crime Act, was signed in November 2002 and predates the granting of civil recovery powers to the CPS.
Existing referral processes from CPS staff to headquarters do not require any amendment to the SLA. In the event that police investigators are trained to undertake free standing civil recovery investigations, the SLA will have to be revisited.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General what steps have been taken to facilitate the (a) Crown Prosecution Service, (b) the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland, (c) the Serious Fraud Office and (d) the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office discharging new responsibilities for civil recovery action; what funding has been provided to each to reflect these new responsibilities; and how many (i) lawyers and (ii) investigations have been employed by each to discharge such functions. [243919]
The Solicitor-General: The information is as follows:
(a) The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) staff across all 42 CPS areas have been asked to refer potential civil recovery cases to the Proceeds of Crime Delivery Unit in CPS headquarters for consideration. Cases to be dealt with by the CPS are passed to the Central Confiscation Unit of the Organised Crime Division, which currently undertakes asset recovery and other civil work in the High Court, and has been given responsibility for civil recovery actions. Other cases are passed to the Serious Organised Crime Agency.
No additional funding has been provided to the CPS to reflect these new responsibilities. However, the Home Office Recovered Assets Incentive Scheme has been amended to enable the CPS to benefit in respect of successful civil recovery actions.
No additional lawyers or investigators have yet been specifically recruited by the CPS to undertake civil recovery work.
(b) The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) has been in discussion with SOCA to develop a memorandum of understanding to provide advice and assistance between the PPS and SOCA including arrangements to deal with civil recovery cases. In the short term, SOCA is responsible for civil recovery. The PPS remains responsible for criminal confiscation following conviction.
To date, no new funding has been provided. No additional lawyers have been recruited to discharge these functions. There have been no investigations in Northern Ireland conducted by the PPS.
(c) The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) recently completed an in-depth review of its approach to all aspects of proceeds of crime activity. This review resulted in a number of recommendations to the director, who has since formed a dedicated Proceeds of Crime Team. The structure of this team is being finalised, with resources being drawn from across the organisation. The team will be fully operational by April 2009.
The team will be responsible for conducting civil recovery investigations in suitable cases. Once the team has achieved accreditation through the National Policing Improvement Agency, they will have the necessary investigative powers to conduct civil recovery investigations under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. At present, there are no resources dedicated to civil recovery investigations within the SFO.
The civil recovery settlement with Balfour Beatty plc. in October this year, which brought in £2.5 million for the Government, approximately £1 million has been made available to the SFO to be invested in asset recovery work. No additional funding has been provided to the SFO in respect of civil recovery work and the team is being funded through the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme.
(d) To date, Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office have not instituted any civil recovery proceedings. No additional funding has been allocated for this work and any such activity would be funded from existing resources.
No staff have been specifically employed to discharge these particular responsibilities.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General how many of the (a) investigators and (b) lawyers employed by the (i) Crown Prosecution Service, (ii) the Public Prosecution Office in Northern Ireland, (iii) the Serious Fraud Office and (iv) the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office have received specific training in civil recovery investigations and litigation in the first six months of this financial year; how many civil recovery investigations were commenced by each agency in that period; in how many such cases assets have been restrained; and what the value of such assets is. [243920]
The Solicitor-General: The information is as follows:
(i) The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not employ any investigators for civil recovery work. Two senior lawyers have been involved in preparing the CPS for the application of these new powers.
The CPS has considered three potential civil recovery cases since April. Two were considered not suitable for civil recovery and one is now being taken forward abroad through mutual legal assistance.
(ii) No training in civil recovery matters has been delivered during the first six months of the financial year.
The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) have not commenced any civil recovery investigations during this period and consequently no assets have been restrained by PPS.
(iii) Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigators and lawyers attend seminars and conferences on civil recovery as part of their continuing professional development.
The SFO has not commenced any civil recovery investigations within the specified period. The first civil recovery settlement was reached with Balfour Beatty plc. in October this year. No assets were restrained in this case.
(iv) Five lawyers within Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office’s (RCPO) asset forfeiture division attended training on confiscation and civil recovery in June 2008.
RCPO has not instituted any civil recovery investigations in this financial year, therefore no assets have been restrained on this basis.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General what plans the Serious Fraud Office has for action in civil recovery; and when she expects these to be implemented. [243928]
The Solicitor-General: The Director of the Serious Fraud Office has encouraged all staff to consider the full range of prosecutorial tools when assessing the appropriate disposal of a case, including civil recovery orders.
The Law Officers' Departments will continue working closely together to consider and develop appropriate policy guidance for use of these orders over the next year.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General what budget allocation has been made for civil recovery work in the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [243929]
The Solicitor-General: In RCPO no budget allocation has been made for civil recovery work for either 2008-09 or 2009-10. Funding is to be provided from our existing resources.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Solicitor-General what arrangements have been put in place in the Crown Prosecution Service to enable the Service to discharge its newly acquired responsibilities for civil recovery; when arrangements will be implemented; and what budget has been allocated for civil recovery work in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [243930]
The Solicitor-General: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) staff across all 42 CPS areas have been asked to refer all potential civil recovery cases to the Proceeds of Crime Delivery Unit (POCDU) within CPS headquarters for consideration. POCDU considers a number of routes for potential civil recovery cases. Where the case meets the legal requirements for civil recovery and appears viable, it will either be referred to the Central Confiscation Unit within CPS headquarters or to the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA). SOCA has agreed to consider civil recovery referrals from the CPS for a period of three years on the same basis as the former Assets Recovery Agency (ARA).
No discrete budget has been allocated for civil recovery work either across CPS areas, or within the Central Confiscation Unit. Civil recovery has been mainstreamed alongside other asset recovery work. No funding has
been provided to the CPS for 2008-09 or 2009-10, however, the Home Office Recovered Assets Incentive Scheme has been amended to enable the CPS to benefit in respect of successful civil recovery actions.
Leader of the House
Computing for Labour
Mr. Maude: To ask the Leader of the House pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 11 December 2008, Official Report, column 72WS, correcting the answer of 11 November 2008, Official Report, column 1129W, (1) whether hon. Members from parties other than the Labour Party are able to subscribe to Computing for Labour's services under the terms of its agreement with the House authorities; [244909]
(2) what the evidential basis was for the original calculation of expenditure on Computing for Labour; [244965]
(3) what representations her Office received from (a) the Labour Party and (b) Computing for Labour following the publication of the original answer; [244970]
(4) if she will publish the individual expenditure by each hon. Member on payments to Computing for Labour in 2007-08. [244971]
Chris Bryant: The House authorities have no agreement with Computing for Labour to provide services to Members of Parliament. Hon. Members subscribe independently to Computing for Labour (CFL) for various services related to their duties as Members of Parliament. They are able to claim for such costs against their parliamentary allowances where they relate to parliamentary duties.
The amounts paid to CFL are for subscriptions for software that is used for Members’ parliamentary duties dealing with correspondence from constituents and other casework. As I outlined in the written ministerial statement of 11 December 2008, Official Report, column 72WS, Members typically claim for an annual membership of £50. Most other claims are for £100 for the caseworker casework management system; £199 for related training; and £235 a year for relevant IT support via a support line.
It is entirely a matter for Computing for Labour whether it is prepared to accept commissions from hon. Members who are not members of the Labour Party.
The answer of 11 November 2008 was incorrect because the information was incorrectly provided by the Department of Resources, which inadvertently added data from an incorrect account code in the course of extracting and collating expenditure data from the House financial system. The Leader received no representations from the Labour party or from CFL following the publication of the original incorrect answer. As soon as the Department of Resources spotted the mistake the Member for Horsham's office were notified.
In 2007-08, 228 hon. Members paid a total of £61,188 to Computing for Labour through the House of Commons. Other Members may have met costs directly and claimed reimbursement. The sums involved in the latter circumstance are not available.
It is not the House's practice to disclose specific details of individual Members’ expenditure.
Right of Search
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Leader of the House whether she was informed by the Serjeant-at-Arms that the police who searched the Parliamentary Office of the hon. Member for Ashford on 27 November 2008 did not have a search warrant. [243582]
Ms Harman: I had no knowledge of the search before it took place, nor the processes under which the search was carried out.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Leader of the House if she will make a statement on the right of search of parliamentary premises. [244157]
Sir Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Leader of the House if she will make a statement on the right of search of parliamentary premises. [244158]
Ms Harman: Access to the offices of hon. Members is not a matter for the Leader of the House. However the matter is covered in Mr. Speaker's protocol sent to individual hon. Members on 8 December 2008. The House has decided to set up a Committee to review this matter.
Culture, Media and Sport
Creativity and Business International Network
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which organisations were involved with the branding for the Creativity and Business International Network; and how much was paid to each organisation. [242438]
Barbara Follett [holding answer 11 December 2008]: Edelman—which is employed by the Department to support the Creativity and Business International Network—engaged the services of ML-N to create the c&binet brand.
Departmental Correspondence
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) letters and (b) e-mails received by his Department had not been responded to as at 15 December 2008. [244701]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to Members/peers correspondence. Information relating to 2008 will be published as soon as it has been collated. The report for 2007 was published on 20 March 2008, Official Report, columns 71-74WS. Reports for earlier years are available in the Library of the House. When responding to all correspondence, Departments should abide by the guidance as set out in “Handling correspondence from MPs, Lords, MEPs and Members of Devolved Assemblies” which was published by the Cabinet office in July 2005.
In respect of all other correspondence, we are unable to provide the information within the disproportionate cost limit (£750) as to do so would require gathering information from every official in the Department.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost to his Department of provision of office facilities to (a) special advisers and (b) press officers (i) was in the last 12 months and (ii) has been in each year since 1997-98. [244837]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The cost of the provision of office facilities to special advisers and press officers was as follows. The cost for years prior to 2006-07 is not available.
| £ | ||
| Special advisers | Press officers | |
Costs include rent, business rates, service charges, utilities, maintenance and accommodation management charges.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |