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11 May 2009 : Column 522W—continued
The Regulator was consulted prior to the decision not to provide transition funding. The Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners received in total some £2.9 million grant in aid with a clear requirement
to be self-financing by March 2010. Police withdrawal of support removed up to 70 per cent. of the Council's income.
The chief executive of the National Policing Improvement Agency wrote to the council on 4 February 2009 notifying his intention to cease any further funding. This was confirmed to the Council in a letter from my hon. Friend the Member for Tynemouth (Mr. Campbell) dated 27 February 2009 following a meeting with the chair and the chief executive of the council.
Cybercrime
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were employed by the National High Tech Crime Unit in 2005 before its amalgamation into the Serious and Organised Crime Agency. [272740]
Jacqui Smith: The number of people employed in the NHTCU varied from time to time but in July 2005 there were 54 persons employed in the NHTCU.
Demonstrations: Parliament Square
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis consulted her on the policing of the demonstration in Parliament Square on 20 April 2009; and if she will make a statement. [271270]
Mr. Coaker: Police tactics and decisions on how to police demonstrations are a matter for the independent operational judgment of chief officers of police. The Home Office has received regular updates from the Metropolitan Police about the demonstration in Parliament Square.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the estimated cost of policing the protests by Sri Lankan Tamils has been to date in Westminster Square. [272883]
Mr. Coaker: This is an operational matter for the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. The Home Office does not hold this information.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police days have been spent on policing the demonstration by Tamils in Parliament Square since demonstrators first assembled there; and what the cost has been to date. [272720]
Mr. Coaker: This is an operational matter for the Commissioner of the Metropolitan police.
The Home Office does not hold information about the cost of policing the demonstration.
Departmental Air Travel
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was spent by her Department on flights (a) within England and (b) outside the UK by (i) Ministers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) civil servants in 2008-09. [269692]
Mr. Woolas: Total expenditure by the Home Department on flights outside the UK by Ministers, special advisers and civil servants in 2008-09 was £1,406,733.
The annual cost of travel reflects both the size of the Home Office, as one of the largest Government Departments, and the scope and changing nature of the Department’s business.
Last year, the Home Office grew with the establishment of the UK Border Agency, incorporating UK Visas and Customs, which operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year, at the UK border and in 135 countries around the world, This expansion took the total staff compliment of the Department to c.26,000.
Expenditure by the Home Department on flights within England in 2008-09 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost as the cost of domestic flights is not broken down by nation or region.
Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the ministerial code and the civil service management code respectively.
Departmental Computers
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for East Surrey (Mr. Ainsworth) of 3 November 2008, Official Report, column 29W, on departmental computers, whether her Department’s system for the automatic switching off of all Departmental desktop devices overnight has been introduced. [272700]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office has a project in progress to implement automatic switching off of computers after hours. This project has not yet reached the stage where the computers power down automatically.
Departmental Data Protection
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland (Dr. Kumar) of 20 April 2009, Official Report, column 161W, on data protection, which of her Department’s agencies plans to appoint a board level senior information risk owner; whether any salary increase is associated with the position; and what the responsibilities of each post holder will be. [273877]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office and its agencies have appointed at board level senior information risk owners to manage information risk. These roles are part of the remit and responsibilities of existing members of the board and do not attract any additional remuneration.
The responsibilities of senior information risk owners are as follows:
To provide an annual report of the assessment of information risk;
To lead and foster a culture that values, protects and uses information for the public good;
Own the overall information risk policy and risk assessment process, test its outcome, and ensure it is used; and
Advise the accounting officer on the information risk aspects of his statement on internal control.
Essex Police Authority: Legislation
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what legislation regulates Essex Police Authority; what amendments have been made to such legislation since its entry into force; what recent representations she has received on the operation of this legislation; which (a) statutory instruments, (b) departmental circulars and (c) other documents she (i) has issued since July 2008 and (ii) plans to issue in the next 12 months consequent on the provisions of this legislation; and if she will make a statement. [273979]
Mr. Coaker: Essex police authority, like all police authorities, is regulated by the Police and Justice Act 1996. There have been no changes to statutory instruments, or new ones issued, under this Act since the former Minister for Policing, Crime and Security, my right hon. Friend the Member for Harrow, East (Mr. McNulty) replied to the hon. Member's question on 22 July 2008, Official Report, column 1348W, and I have not received any recent representations on any legislation. In relation to future changes, Home Office officials are currently reviewing the entire regulatory framework with the Association of Police Authorities. While I expect there will be some changes, the review is at too early a stage to say what those changes would be.
Human Trafficking
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the incidence of repeat trafficking of individuals. [272925]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The nature of human trafficking makes it difficult to provide a precise estimate of the number of victims in the United Kingdom, including those who are repeat victims. Our current estimate of the number of victims is that at any one time in 2003 there were up to 4,000 women in the UK who were victims of trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation.
The United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre continues to work on providing a more up to date estimate of the number of victims. We will be in a position to provide a more up to date estimate of the overall number including repeat victims by the end of the year.
Human Trafficking: Babies
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to (a) identify and (b) prosecute offences related to the trafficking of babies into the UK. [273056]
Mr. Alan Campbell: A number of steps are being taken to identify and prosecute offenders trafficking babies into the UK. This includes the Government amendment to the Borders Citizenship and Immigration Bill which will enable the prosecution under trafficking legislation of those who bring babies and young children into the country for illegal purposes and where because of their age the role of the child is entirely passive.
The Government's Action Plan on Tackling Human Trafficking includes a measure to prevent the trafficking of babies and children into the UK for fraudulently acquiring welfare benefits.
Ongoing police-led operations at Heathrow and Gatwick continue to succeed in identifying trafficked children and ensuring their safety by working effectively with border staff and social workers.
Immigration
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department uses the category of non-UK born UK nationals in its immigration (a) policy and (b) statistics. [271793]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office publishes data in statistical publications based on the nationality of a migrant rather than their place of birth. Publishing data on non-UK born UK nationals would require a cross tabulation of nationality and country of birth which is not available from the majority of UKBA statistical datasets.
Independent Safeguarding Authority
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people (a) are employed and (b) she estimates will be employed by the Independent Safeguarding Authority in July 2010. [269251]
Jacqui Smith: The ISA currently employs 184 staff and it is estimated it will employ between 200 and 250 full-time equivalent staff by July 2010.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget of the Independent Safeguarding Authority is for (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12. [269252]
Jacqui Smith: The budget for ISA for (a) 2009-10 is £12.9 million. The forecast cost requirement for ISA which will form the basis of a budget for (b) 2010-11 is £40 million and for (c) 2011-12 is £41.7 million.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department's expenditure was on the Independent Safeguarding Authority on the latest date for which figures are available. [269253]
Jacqui Smith: The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) has been established to take barring decisions under the new Vetting and Barring Scheme. This is designed to improve public safeguarding by extending the scope of work with children and vulnerable adults covered by the barring regime, and providing independent decision making. The ISA is sponsored by the Home Office but funding is allocated jointly to the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department of Health. Total expenditure on the scheme, including setting up the ISA was:
| £ million | ||
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
Internet: Children
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Government plans to implement its commitment to ensure that all internet service providers use filters to block images of child abuse; and if she will make a statement. [272929]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The Government welcome the work done by industry to block images of child sexual abuse, resulting in 95 per cent. of consumer broadband lines being covered by blocking. The UK now hosts less than 1 per cent. of the total number of child abuse image sites on the internet, and when one is identified they are quickly closed down. We are currently looking at options to progress the final 5 per cent. and the Government will be setting out actions and time scales in due course.
Members: Correspondence
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Minister of State for Borders and Immigration plans to reply to the e-mail from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 19 February 2009, on undocumented migrants. [274438]
Mr. Woolas: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 13 March 2009.
Offences Against Children
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the civil powers to protect children from internet grooming under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 have been used in each year since their entry into force in each police force area; and if she will make a statement. [271042]
Mr. Alan Campbell: There are a range of preventative civil orders available under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 to protect children from the risk of sexual harm rather than a specific civil power to protect against internet grooming. The number of times, for example, Sexual Offences Prevention Orders and Foreign Travel Orders have been used in each year and by each police area is reported in the annual MAPPA reports. The MAPPA reports are available at:
Police: Bureaucracy
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which police forms will be (a) removed and (b) reduced in length as part of the Government’s commitment to reduce the administrative burden on police forces; and on what date the revised version of each amended form will come into effect. [272992]
Jacqui Smith: The Policing Green Paper, published last year, committed the Government to reduce red tape and improve police processes to free officers up to deal with the issues that matter most to local people.
On 1 January 2009 changes to PACE Code A came in to effect which removed the requirement of police officers to complete the Stop and Account form, while retaining the recording of the ethnicity of those stopped for monitoring reasons.
On 16 February 2009 the Home Office published a review by its permanent secretary, Sir David Normington, which set out detailed proposals for delivering the Green Paper’s commitment for the Home Office to reduce by up to 50 per cent. the amount of data it collects from police forces. This included the immediate removal of the requirement for police officers to complete time-sheets for the purposes of Activity Based Costing.
Action on forms is part of a wider approach to bureaucracy reduction, focusing on the simplification of policing processes and more effective management of risk. Jan Berry has been appointed as the independent Reducing Bureaucracy Advocate to challenge Government and the police service to make further progress on these issues, supported by a practitioner group of police officers and staff.
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