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1 Jun 2009 : Column 88W—continued
Probation Boards
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what percentage of probation board members are black and minority ethnic; [275383]
(2) what remuneration the (a) Chair and (b) members of probation board and trusts receive. [275384]
Mr. Hanson: There are 370 board members in the 42 probation boards/trusts in England and Wales, of whom 11.35 per cent. are from a BME background.
The remuneration for probation board/trust chairs is largely dependent on the population band of the area they cover, with probation/trust chairs being paid between £15,400 and £27,500 and committing up to two days a week. Board/trust members are paid an hourly rate of £15.40 with a commitment of up to five days a month.
The following table lists the current salaries of chairs of all probation areas/trusts for England and Wales.
Sentencing
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of all prison sentences handed down in each year since 1997 were for six months or less. [264717]
Mr. Hanson: The available information is shown in the table.
These figures can also be found on table 2.3 of the 2007 annual sentencing statistics bulletin published by the Ministry of Justice in 2008 and available on:
| Number of persons issued with immediate custody of six months or less , 1 997 to 2007 | |||||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |
| Notes: 1. The statistics given are on a principal offence basis. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2. These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. 3. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. Source: OMS Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice | |||||||||||
Shoplifting: Convictions
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many convictions there were for shoplifting in (a) 2007 and (b) 2008. [276186]
Maria Eagle: Data held by the Ministry of Justice show that there were 62,565 defendants found guilty at all courts for ‘stealing from shops and stalls’ (shoplifting) under the Theft Act 1968 sec. 1, in England and Wales 2007.
These data are on the principal offence basis. The figure given on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
Court proceedings data for 2008 will be available in the autumn of 2009.
Shoplifting: Prosecutions
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many successful prosecutions were brought for failure to pay fixed penalty notices for shoplifting in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [276609]
Mr. Straw: Non-payment of a penalty notice for disorder (PND) does not of itself result in prosecution for failing to pay. Recipients of PNDs may either pay the penalty or opt for a court hearing, when they may be prosecuted for the original offence. If they do neither, a fine of one and a half times the amount of the penalty is registered against them, this is enforceable in the normal way for fines. Of the 45,146 penalty notices for disorder issued for shop theft in 2007, the latest year for which figures are available, 172 chose to have their case heard by a court and 24,344 fines were registered. Currently it is not possible to provide separate enforcement rates for fines arising from unpaid PNDs.
Shoplifting: Reoffenders
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to issue amended guidelines to reduce reoffending by those convicted of shop theft. [276123]
Mr. Straw: The Government issue operational guidance on the issuing of penalty notices for disorder (PNDs) to police forces under section 6 of the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001. This guidance sets out the criteria which should be considered by police officers before issuing PNDs.
Following representations from the hon. Lady and from retail organisations, the guidance covering shoplifting is being strengthened so as to make clear that no offender should receive more than one PND. We hope that a tougher response to shop theft will help reduce reoffending. The new guidance will be issued shortly.
We are also reviewing the use of PNDs for theft and will report our conclusions to the House soon.
Young Offenders: Reoffenders
Mr. Duncan Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of re-offending by young people between the ages of 10 and 17 years in the latest year for which information is available. [277435]
Mr. Hanson: The level of reoffending by young people aged 10 to 17-years-old is at its lowest since records for the frequency of reoffending began in 2000, with the juvenile reoffending rate down by almost a quarter between 2000 and 2007. This success reflects the Government's investment in the youth justice system and the significant reforms we have implemented since 1997. We do not make an estimate of the overall cost to the public purse of young people's reoffending.
Work and Pensions
Calor Gas: Canvey Island
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions the Health and Safety Executive has had with Calor on (a) works and (b) levels of activity at the Calor Gas Canvey site in the last 12 months. [275632]
Jonathan Shaw: Over the last 12 months HSE has had regular engagement with Calor Gas Ltd’s national and site-based managers regarding safety at the Canvey Island site as part of its ongoing intervention strategy for Calor Gas Ltd. The range of topics discussed included Calor Gas’s:
Development of process safety performance indicators;
Maintenance of plant integrity, in particular plant design and the examination and testing of safety critical plant;
Management systems for dealing with plant, process and organisational change; and
Assessment of risks to people in occupied buildings.
HSE has also had a number of detailed discussions with Calor Gas’s managers and staff as part of its investigation into the release of liquefied propane gas (LPG) at the site on 27 October 2008, and in relation to the service of, and Calor Gas’s subsequent compliance with, a prohibition notice.
Departmental Contracts for Services
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which services his Department has outsourced in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [274441]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department for Work and Pensions has outsourced the following services in the last five years:
| Year outsourced | Service outsourced | Agency |
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