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12 Jan 2009 : Column 288W—continued
| Table 2: Number of profiles removed from the PED for forces in England and Wales | ||||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 to date | |
Paul Holmes:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate her Department has made of the number of incidents where personal information and DNA samples which (a) were to be
loaded onto the national DNA database and (b) have been loaded onto the national DNA database have been lost; and if she will make a statement. [240924]
Mr. Alan Campbell: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 17 December 2008, Official Report, column 859W, to the hon. Member for Cardiff, Central (Jenny Willott).
Hatton Cross Tribunals
Mr. Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, Official Report, column 2258W, on Hatton Cross Tribunals, when she plans to write to the hon. Member for Newbury; and if she will make a statement. [244010]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 15 December 2008]: I wrote to the hon. Member on 9 December 2008 in response to PQs 226752 and 239031.
Human Trafficking
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are in place to deal with people who are identified as having been trafficked. [242657]
Maria Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
The Ministry of Justice and the Home Office jointly funds the Poppy project to provide specialist, high-level support to victims of human trafficking for sexual exploitation. Victims are provided with a 30 day reflection period, accommodation, advocacy support, access to counselling, interpretative services, access to immigration legal advice, resettlement support and a range of other services to meet their individual needs. The Poppy project also has outreach teams. This year the Government piloted support services for victims trafficked into domestic servitude and forced labour.
We ratified the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings on 17 December 2008 and will come into force in April 2009. This will see the introduction of a 45 day minimum reflection period and one-year temporary residence permits, both of which will be extendable in certain circumstances. We will also introduce a national support service model with an increased number of supported accommodation places.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when her Department notified the Metropolitan Police that her Department's funding of the Metropolitan Police human trafficking unit would cease; what representations she has received from the Metropolitan Police on this matter; and if she will place in the Library copies of the correspondence she has (a) sent and (b) received on the matter. [241791]
Jacqui Smith: Following discussions with the MPS we have agreed, exceptionally, to provide funding which will enable the MPS to maintain the trafficking team for 2009-10 and to ensure that this work is mainstreamed into the existing budget. The funding has been offered on the basis that the full cost of the trafficking team is met solely from the MPS budget as from 1 April 2010.
The MPS were informed by ACPO of the grant available for the current financial year in early 2008.
On one previous occasion the MPS wrote to the Home Office about this matter. It was made clear to the MPS at the time, that as core police business the funding of the trafficking team should be met from within their existing budget.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of people who have been trafficked who are (a) in the UK and (b) working as prostitutes in the UK. [244929]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The nature of the crime makes it difficult to provide an accurate assessment of the scale of the problem faced by the United Kingdom.
The latest estimate is that at any one time in 2003 there were up to 4,000 women in the UK who had been trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
We have no estimate of the scale of trafficking for non sexual purposes.
Human Trafficking: Children
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many children rescued from human traffickers have subsequently been put up in bed and breakfast accommodation in each of the last five years; [243308]
(2) where children rescued from human traffickers are accommodated. [243307]
Jacqui Smith: There are no central records on the type of accommodation provided for trafficked children. When a child is identified as a victim of trafficking a full assessment is made of their circumstances and needs by a designated social worker as required by section 20 of the Children Act 1989. Should there be an imminent risk of harm then child protection procedures under Section 47 of the Act should be invoked. Following these assessments it will be for the local authority to determine the exact nature of accommodation provided.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether (a) the use of safe accommodation at the Poppy Project is available for children who are victims of human trafficking and (b) there is safe accommodation providing 24-hour care for trafficked children. [243309]
Jacqui Smith: The POPPY project was established exclusively to support and accommodate adult women who have been trafficked for sexual exploitation and does not therefore accommodate child victims.
When a child is identified as a victim of trafficking, a full assessment is made of their circumstances and needs by a social worker as required by section 20 of the Children Act 1989. If on the basis of this assessment, the child is unaccompanied and there is no suitable adult to take responsibility for their care; or the child appears to be lost or abandoned, then there will be a presumption that the child will need to become a looked-after child. Where it is judged that the child would be best looked after under foster care or in a children’s home, then 24-hour care will be provided.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department has assessed the possibility that rescued children who are victims of human trafficking may still be under the control of traffickers while they are in local authority care. [243347]
Jacqui Smith: The Government acknowledges that some rescued trafficked children placed in local authority care may still be vulnerable to their trafficker. In December 2007 the Government published “Working Together to Safeguard Children Who May Have Been Trafficked”. This multi agency guidance provides comprehensive information on how a child should be protected from their trafficker and of the risks of a child being re-trafficked.
Human Trafficking: Sentencing
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the maximum sentence is for human trafficking offences. [243302]
Jacqui Smith: The maximum sentence is 14 years imprisonment. The courts have the power to impose an additional fine on those convicted.
Human Trafficking: Victims
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what public funding is available for victims of trafficking to the UK from (a) the first group of EU accession countries, (b) the second group of EU accession countries and (c) Romania and Bulgaria who wish to return to their home countries; and what steps are taken to (i) accompany such people to the airport of departure and (ii) ensure support and advice is available to them in their home country. [243825]
Mr. Woolas: No public funding is currently available for victims of trafficking to the UK for EEA (European economic area) nationals who wish to return to their home countries.
Identity Cards: Biometrics
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long the biometric information will be retained in respect of foreign nationals issued with a biometric identity card after the individual concerned has returned permanently to their home country. [244113]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Borders Act 2007 provides for biometric information collected by the Secretary of State to be retained as long as retention of that data is necessary. The specified functions, for example, include functions under the Immigration Acts or for the prevention or detection of an offence. Where an individual leaves the UK permanently, his biometric data will only be retained in circumstances where they continue to be of use for the purposes prescribed in the regulations. Retention of biometric information will therefore enable the UK Border Agency to identify those who may seek to abuse immigration control by returning to the UK in a false identity, and help to assure the identity of those who are entitled to be here.
The biometric information collected will be destroyed if it is no longer of use for those specified purposes. It will also be destroyed if the person proves that they are a British citizen or a Commonwealth citizen with a right of abode. The exception to this is where the information is retained in accordance with, and for the purposes of, another enactment (that is, where Parliament has already approved retention of information for a particular purpose) for example under the Identity Cards Act 2006.
Identity Cards: Concessions
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what reductions in the full price of an identity card she plans to offer (a) pensioners, (b) students and (c) those on income support. [244620]
Jacqui Smith: The Identity Cards Act Secondary legislation consultation paper, published on 21 November 2008, made clear that it is intended that the initial fee for an identity card issued in 2009 and 2010 should be a standard fee of £30.
In due course the Government intend to seek views on the price of identity cards or passports as part of the longer term roll out of the National Identity Scheme.
Identity Cards: ICT
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will list the electronic systems that will be used to store the (a) biometric, (b) biographical and (c) administrative information of British citizens applying for identity cards in 2009. [241657]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 9 December 2008]: For the issue of ID cards in 2009, biometric and biographic information will be stored separately on secure systems being built by the supplier providing the technology for this stage of the National identity Scheme. Administrative information will also be held separately on the biographic system.
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