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1 Apr 2009 : Column 1257W—continued
A straightforward application can be decided on the basis of the application and the supporting documents submitted without the need for further inquiries or more detailed scrutiny. A non-straightforward application requires more time to be decided, for example if more detailed inquiries or a personal interview are needed.
UK visa fees are standard throughout the world. The current fees were introduced on 1 April 2008. The fee for a standard six month visit visa is £65 (previously £63) and for longer term visit visas (valid for one, two or five years) is £205 (previously £200).
Fines
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to increase the proportion of fines collected under (a) fixed penalty notices and (b) penalty notices for disorder. [266155]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 24 March 2009]: The payment rate for fixed penalty notices (FPNs) for traffic offences is 85 per cent. (98 per cent. for endorsable offences).
When PNDs and FPNs, apart from FPNs issued under the conditional offer FPN system, remain unpaid, they are registered as fines and come under the fines collection system. (If a conditional offer FPN is unpaid, the person concerned will be prosecuted).
Once registered as fines unpaid, FPNs/PNDs are not tracked separately from fines imposed by the courts. HM Court Service can therefore not provide information about their particular enforcement outcome.
Foreign Workers
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department had spent on seminars provided by the UK Border Agency for businesses on the recruitment of migrant workers on the latest date for which figures are available. [264365]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 18 March 2009]: The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has spent £37,065 during FY 2008-09 on events and seminars to raise organisations’ awareness of the stringent new sponsorship and compliance requirements they must meet to become a registered sponsor under the new Points-Based Migration System.
These costs include seminars for both employers and for educational institutions wishing to sponsor overseas students under the new Points Based System. They also include UKBA holding consultative meetings with key stakeholder groups including our three “Taskforces” (Joint Education Taskforce; Employer Taskforce; and Arts and Entertainments Taskforce).
Hezbollah
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria are used to distinguish between the military and political wings of Hezbollah for the purposes of specifying proscribed organisations. [265485]
Mr. Coaker: The elements of Hezbollah which meet the criteria for proscription under section 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000 are listed in Schedule 2 to that Act. The relevant entry proscribes “the military wing of Hezbollah, including the Jihad Council and all units reporting to it (including the Hezbollah External Security Organisation)”. Those parts of Hezbollah which do not fall within the Schedule 2 entry are not proscribed.
The External Security Organisation (ESO) of Hezbollah was originally proscribed in 2001. In July 2008 this was extended to cover the entire military wing after evidence emerged of units not limited to the ESO being concerned
in terrorism, particularly in the provision of training and support to militant groups in Iraq and other terrorist groups in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
In distinguishing between the political and military wings for the purposes of proscription, the Government's aim is to proscribe only those parts of Hezbollah which are directly concerned in terrorism, while recognising the legitimate political, social and humanitarian activities undertaken by other parts of Hezbollah.
House of Commons: Right of Search
Mr. Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will obtain and place in the Library a copy of (a) the synopsis and (b) the full report of Sir Ian Johnston of the British Transport Police into the entry into and search of the parliamentary office of the hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green). [257301]
Mr. Coaker: I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) on 10 February 2009, Official Report, column 1830W.
Identity and Passport Service: Marketing
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding the Identity and Passport Service allocated for publicity and promotional purposes in its budget for 2008-09. [267453]
Mr. Malik: IPS forecasts it will spend £618,000 for publicity and promotional purposes in 2008-09.
Immigrants
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether it is her Department's policy to classify non-UK born UK nationals as non-immigrants when they are living within the UK. [262054]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 March 2009]: There are six categories of British national: British citizens, British overseas territories citizens, British Overseas citizens, British National (Overseas), British subject and British protected person. British citizenship and British overseas territories citizenship derive from a personal or ancestral connection with the United Kingdom or one of the remaining British overseas territories. The other statuses derive, in the main, from similar connections with a former British colony, or a foreign territory which was formerly under British jurisdiction.
Only British citizens and certain British subjects have the right of abode in the United Kingdom. The others are subject to UK immigration control, although British overseas territories citizens who derive that status from a Gibraltar connection enjoy certain rights of free movement and establishment under the EC Treaty. As regards entry to the United Kingdom, other types of British national are not treated any differently to those of any other nationality when it comes to settlement. They have to qualify under the immigration rules in the same way as any other applicant.
Immigration: Manpower
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2009, Official Report, column 1638W, on immigration: manpower, how much her Department paid to (a) the French authorities and (b) private companies in 2008. [263264]
Mr. Woolas: The figures for the amount paid to (a) French authorities and (b) private companies in relation to Border Force operations in France for period 2007-08 are as follows:
(a) French authorities: £41,100
(b) Private companies: £6.7million
These figures are taken from the latest period for which financial accounts are available.
Members: Correspondence
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letters from the hon. Member for Totnes of 24 November 2008 and 22 January 2009 on advice to the Government on the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings. [260378]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 4 March 2009]: A reply was sent on 19 March 2009.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter of 26 January 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr. Mohammad Nadeem. [266374]
Jacqui Smith: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 26 March 2009.
Police: Surveillance
Mr. Rob Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how much each police force spent on overt surveillance operations in each of the last five years; [266581]
(2) how much has been spent by each police force on (a) gathering and (b) storing (i) film and (ii) data on (A) protesters and (B) media coverage of protests in each of the last five years. [266582]
Mr. Coaker: This information is not held centrally by the Home Office.
Terrorism
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the (a) total cost and (b) cost per person to train UK workers to respond to a terrorist threat was in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement; [267050]
(2) what estimate she has made of the number of people trained to deal with a terror attack in (a) urban, (b) suburban and (c) rural areas; and if she will make a statement. [267051]
Mr. Coaker: The number of people trained to deal with a terrorist attack and the costs of their training are not held centrally. Training for staff who may be involved in responding to a terrorist attack in the UK is widespread and is delivered across a number of Government agencies and departments and by the private sector, including the owners and managers of public facilities, transport operators and managers and those responsible for maintaining the national infrastructure.
The police National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) through local police Counter Terrorism Security Advisers (CTSAs) deliver “Project Argus”, a scenario based training event to businesses to help them identify and recover from a terrorist attack. “Project Argus” is a series of products that is delivered by NaCTSO and CTSAs and is free at the point of delivery. “Project Argus” is one of a number of activities undertaken by NaCTSO and CTSAs and it is not possible to identify separate costs for running Project Argus events.
Terrorism: Crime Prevention
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2008, Official Report, columns 583-4W, on community relations, how much police forces in England and Wales have spent on Prevent-related projects and activities to date; [262010]
(2) if she will place in the Library a copy of the Association of Chief Police Officers’ Strategy and Delivery Plan, referred to on page 49 of The Prevent Strategy: A Guide for Local Partners in England; [262107]
(3) what proportion of the money which has been allocated to police forces under the Prevent strand of Project Contest for 2008-09 has been spent on (a) recruiting, (b) training and (c) paying community engagement and counter terrorism intelligence officers; [262119]
(4) how much police forces under the Prevent strand of Project Contest for 2008-09 (a) have been allocated for 2008-09 and (b) is planned to be allocated for 2009-10 to each of the 24 police forces; how those police forces were selected; and how many community engagement and counter terrorism intelligence officer appointments have so far been made. [262124]
Mr. Coaker: Under the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) funding arrangements 2008-09 to 2010-11 OSCT are providing additional funding to establish over 300 new police posts across the country dedicated to the Prevent agenda. In 2008-09 we have costed around £12 million across 24 priority forces, and regional Counter Terrorism Units and Counter Terrorism Intelligence Units, the distribution of which was based on an assessment of population vulnerability and evaluated intelligence cross matched to the Department of Communities and Local Government’s Preventing Violent Extremism areas. This includes provision for police officer and police staff training. Figures on recruitment costs are not held centrally.
ACPO have advised that to date 154 Community Engagement and Counter-Terrorism Intelligence Officers have been appointed.
We have also made the following funding available to the police this year to roll out police led Prevent programmes:
£1 million for the Channel Project.
£3 million for the 24 priority police forces to work with Government Offices and other partners to support PREVENT work in schools and education institutions including higher and further education.
A joint funding package of £480,000 from the Home Office and the Department for Children Schools and Families (DCSF) was given to The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) to pay for the copyright of The Kids Taskforce Watch Over Me DVDs for three years supplemented by 60 training days for teachers and partners.
£1,263,632 to police forces and local authorities, for 13 police led projects relating to Objectives two and three (supporting vulnerable institutions and vulnerable individuals) of the Prevent Strategy.
£100,000 for ACPO national Prevent Conferences.
£82,178 to ACPO for national communities tension monitoring.
£4,598,961 to support the work of the National Prison's Intelligence Unit and Prison Intelligence Officers and Analysts within Special Branches of individual forces.
In addition, the police have invested their own resources into Prevent activity at a force and regional level.
Discussions about allocation of CSR resource and funding for police led Prevent Programmes in 2009-10 are ongoing.
I have been advised by ACPO that their Prevent Strategy and Delivery Plan is protectively marked as a restricted document, however, they have produced an unrestricted version of their Implementation plan: ‘Prevent: The Policing Response to the Prevention of Terrorism and Violent Extremism’ which they have made available to you. I have also arranged for copies to be placed in the House Library.
International Development
Departmental Buildings
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what buildings are owned or operated by his Department under a private finance initiative (PFI) arrangement; and which companies are involved with each such PFI arrangement. [267408]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has no buildings owned or operated under a private finance initiative (PFI) arrangement.
Departmental Press
Mr. Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how many (a) speeches and (b) articles were prepared for Ministers in his Department by the Department's News Department in 2008 referred to on page 31 of his Department's communications strategy; [267350]
(2) if he will publish a list of the stories proactively placed in national newspapers by his Department's News Department in 2008 referred to on page 31 of his Department's communications strategy. [267347]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Ministerial speeches and articles are published on the Department’s web-site:
DFID regularly updates national newspapers on aspects of its work.
Mr. Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people are employed in his Department's (a) News Department and (b) Strategic Communications Department (i) with each job title, (ii) at each civil service grade and (iii) in each pay band; and if he will make a statement. [267351]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the ‘White Book’ published by the Central Office of Information (COI).
Mr. Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) if he will place in the Library a copy of the forward planning grid for 2009 of his Department's (a) News Department and (b) Strategic Communications Department; [267460]
(2) if he will place in the Library a copy of the unclassified version of his Department's strategic communications planning team's DFID News Diary for (a) the week commencing 12 January 2009 and (b) the week commencing 6 April 2009 referred to on page 31 of his Department's communications strategy; [267346]
(3) if he will place in the Library a copy of the checklist for preparing announcements, events, publications and speeches prepared by his Department's strategic communications planning department referred to on page 31 of his Department's communications strategy. [267348]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development’s (DFID) forward planning grid, news diaries and checklist for preparing announcements, publications and speeches are for internal planning purposes only.
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