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19 Jan 2009 : Column 1219W—continued
Departmental Telephone Services
Mr. Graham Stuart:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what use (a) her Department and (b) service providers under contract to her Department make of (i) 0844 and 0845 telephone
numbers and (ii) revenue-sharing telephone numbers for calls from members of the public; for which services such numbers are used; what prefixes are used for revenue-sharing numbers; how much revenue has accrued from revenue-sharing numbers in each of the last five years; what consideration her Department has given to introducing 03-prefixed telephone numbers for calls to all such services; and if she will make a statement. [247344]
Mr. Woolas: Please see the following table detailing the use and purpose of non-geographic numbers, e.g. 0845 and 0870.
The Home Office did not derive any income from such charges in each of the last three years. Information relating to revenue generated prior to 2005 is not held centrally and as such it is not possible to answer this aspect of the question within time and cost limits of the PQ process.
The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) replaced all 0870 numbers to the Passport Adviceline with two 0300 numbers on 1 September 2008. The sole 0845 number to the Passport Adviceline was replaced at the same time with a 0300 number. There is however a transition period that is currently halfway through and both numbers will be accessible until 31 August 2009. The revenue arising from the previous 0870 IPS arrangements was approximately £300,000 per year and was used to offset the cost of providing the service to callers.
0845 numbers are however used for customer correspondence inquiries in to the Liverpool, Newport and Peterborough passport offices and similar arrangements are planned for the remaining four IPS regional passport offices.
The General Register Office, part of IPS, intends to investigate the introduction of an 03-prefixed telephone number during the financial year 2009-10.
Detention Centres
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigration removal centres she has visited in the last 12 months. [248356]
Mr. Woolas: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has visited one immigration removal centre (IRC) in the past 12 months—Jacqui Smith visited Colnbrook IRC on 21 January 2008.
Dorset Police: Olympic Games 2012
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many extra police will be allocated to the Dorset Constabulary to provide security for the aquatic events for the duration of the 2012 Olympics; [248067]
(2) how much local authorities in the area will contribute to the overall cost of providing security for the Dorset events of the 2012 Olympics; [248068]
(3) what estimate has been made of the policing costs to provide security for the Olympic 2012 events taking place in Dorset. [248082]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 15 January 2009]: We have set aside up to £600 million to ensure a safe and secure Olympic Games in 2012 and are in the process of producing an integrated costed security strategy.
We are working closely with Dorset police on their requirements for policing the sailing events.
Funds have been allocated to Dorset police for their planning team in 2007-08 and 2008-09 and accommodation through to 2012.
Any decisions will need to take account of the operational needs of the police and other security agencies, affordability with the total funding envelope and the need to secure value for money.
Driving Under Influence: Screening
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2008, on driving under influence, what assessment her Department has made of the discrepancy between the rate (a) at which screening tests are undertaken and (b) of positive tests; and if she will make a statement. [248061]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The police can require a person to take a screening breath test if they reasonably suspect that person of drink driving, or of committing a moving traffic offence or of driving a vehicle involved in a road traffic accident. Use of this power is an operational matter for the police. The percentage of tests which are positive can be affected by various factors, including the numbers drink driving, the number of tests administered and where, when and on which motorists the police administer them.
Drug Seizures
James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what quantities of (a) class A, (b) class B and (c) class C drugs have been seized by the Serious Organised Crime Agency in each of the last two years. [245949]
Mr. Alan Campbell: SOCA published details of class A drug seizures for the years 2006-07 and 2007-08 in its last two annual reports. These reported seizures flowing from SOCA’s work of in excess of 74 tonnes and 89 tonnes respectively.
SOCA has not published details of class B or class C interdictions in general but has provided details of cannabis interdictions in its last two annual reports. The 2006-07 Annual Report stated that 10 tonnes of cannabis was seized as a result of UK-based operations. The
2007-08 Annual Report stated that 30 tonnes of cannabis was seized as a result of both UK and overseas based operations.
James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) publishes guidance to assist its officers on the circumstances in which a drugs seizure conducted by another agency is to be treated as having been made principally as a result of SOCA activity and information supplied by SOCA. [245957]
Mr. Alan Campbell: SOCA provides its officers with clear guidance on the recording of drugs seizures, to ensure they are recorded only in cases where SOCA has direct responsibility, or where the seizure was made principally as a result of information provided by SOCA.
Drug seizures that are included in SOCA totals for management information purposes must have emanated from tasked SOCA operations. The circumstances in which seizures made by other agencies are also included are:
where another agency is asked to carry out the seizure on behalf of SOCA for reasons of operational sensitivity; or
where SOCA does not have the power to seize drugs but passes information onto another (usually foreign) law enforcement agency to enable the seizure to be effected.
Drugs: Young People
James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the proportion of young people who took (a) cocaine and (b) ecstasy in each of the last 10 years. [248611]
Mr. Alan Campbell: There are two primary sources of statistics on the use of illicit drugs by young people: the British Crime Survey (which covers England and Wales) and the Survey of Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use among young people in England.
Table 1 provides data from the British Crime Survey for the proportion of young people aged 16 to 24 reporting the use of any cocaine in the last year between 1998 and 2007-08.
Table 2 provides additional data from the Survey of Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use data for the proportion of 11-15-year-olds who reported taking cocaine in the past year between 2001 and 2007.
| Table 1: Proportion of 16 to 24-year-olds reporting use of cocaine and ecstasy, 1998 to 2007-08 BCS | |||||||||
| Percentage | |||||||||
| 1998 | 2000 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Source: 1999 to 2007-08 BCS (self-completion modules). | |||||||||
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