| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
23 Jun 2009 : Column 806W—continued
Surveillance: Data Protection
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on the retention of (a) data and (b) other information collected through directed surveillance or covert human intelligence sources where the surveillance activity has revealed no evidence of wrongdoing. [280040]
Mr. Hanson: Statutory codes of practice on communications data, covert surveillance and covert human intelligence sources are made under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers 2000. These require each public authority to have arrangements in place for the handling, storage and destruction of material. Authorising officers must ensure that all such data are held in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998, which stipulates that there must be a proportionate reason to retain material. The codes of practice for covert surveillance and covert human intelligence sources are currently being revised and were published in draft form as part of the RIPA consultation launched on 17 April.
Terrorism
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Office of Security and Counter-Terrorism has taken to develop an appropriate performance framework for counter-terrorism policing; and when he expects the framework to be implemented nationally. [273025]
Alan Johnson: We have developed a set of six counter-terrorism policing performance indicators, which were incorporated into the Assessments of Policing and Community Safety (APACS) performance framework and, for the first time, implemented nationally in 2008-09. These cover the extent and quality of local police counter-terrorism related intelligence, the disruption of potential threats, an evaluation of police Prevent programmes, and vulnerabilities around hazardous sites and crowded places. The results are not published, but will provide police forces, police authorities and Government with vital counter-terrorism information.
This is complemented by current work led by the Association of Chief Police Officers’ Terrorism and Allied Matters business area (ACPO (TAM)) to develop a performance framework specifically for the police Counter Terrorism Network, and also by wider guidance being produced by the Association of Police Authorities for the scrutiny of all protective services.
Vetting
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many completed Criminal Records Bureau disclosures which did not contain details of any criminal conviction were issued with notes by a chief police officer in each of the last 10 years; [279870]
(2) how many completed Criminal Records Bureau disclosures which did not contain details of any criminal conviction were issued in each police force area in each of the last 10 years. [279871]
Alan Johnson: The overall number of records checks conducted by the police forces which have resulted in such information being released in each year for which records are available can be found in the following table:
| Disclosures issued | Disclosures with no LPF info | Disclosures with approved info from LPF | |
The CRB is unable to provide information broken down by each police force area because several forces may be involved with producing a single Disclosure. Furthermore, data are not available to distinguish between “approved” or “additional” information. To explain further, comments from chief police officers can be revealed on the face of a Disclosure as “approved information” or in rare cases sent separately to the registered body as “additional information” in the form of a separate letter.
These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
Work and Pensions
Children: Maintenance
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in cases where a private arrangement for child maintenance payments has been agreed between a non-resident parent and the parent with care, what requirement there is to notify the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (CMEC); and what mechanism there is for CMEC to ensure that the non-resident parent is paying an appropriate amount to the parent with care. [278459]
Jonathan Shaw: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to my right hon. Friend with the information requested.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in cases where a private arrangement for child maintenance payments has been agreed between a non-resident parent and the parent with care what requirement there is to notify the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (C-MEC); and what mechanism there is for C-MEC to ensure that the non-resident parent is paying an appropriate amount to the parent with care. [278459]
The Commission’s new Child Maintenance Options service is already supporting and guiding parents through the choices they now have in arriving at a child maintenance arrangement best suited to the needs of their family—whether that is a private arrangement or one organised through the statutory service. They do this by ensuring parents understand all the options open to them including the provisions and protections of the statutory
scheme. Should parents decide that a private arrangement best meets the needs of their family then there is no requirement for them to notify the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission that they have come to such an agreement. However either parent continues to be free to make an application to the statutory maintenance scheme if their private arrangement breaks down or is no longer satisfactory.
The primary objective of the Commission is to maximise the number of effective maintenance arrangements for children who live apart from one or both of their parents and it has begun a programme of research, measurement and evaluation to provide robust measures and understand more about the attitudes, behaviours, service needs and expectations of its current and potential future clients.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission has made of the number of non-resident parents whose maintenance calculation has been made by the Child Support Agency and whose maintenance is paid directly to the parent with care are non-compliant with that calculation. [279052]
Jonathan Shaw: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to my right hon. Friend with the information requested.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many non-resident parents whose maintenance calculation has been made by the Child Support Agency and whose maintenance is paid directly to the parent with care does the Child Support Agency estimate are non-compliant with that calculation. [279052]
At the end of March 2009 there were around 161,000 cases, where the maintenance calculation has been made by the Child Support Agency and maintenance is paid directly to the parent. These cases are treated as fully compliant.
The number of parents choosing to pay and receive maintenance direct has grown by 30% over the last three years and is now around 13% of the live caseload. Parents with care are free to return to the collections service should they be no longer satisfied with receiving their maintenance direct. The Agency’s latest estimate is that less than 1% of these cases return to the collections service each month.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) with reference to figures 16 and 18 in the National Audit Office report, Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms, HC1174, Session 2005-06, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993; [279053]
(2) in how many cases the Child Support Agency adjudicated that money was (a) owed and (b) not owed by the non-resident parent to the parent with care in each year since 1993; [279054]
(3) with reference to paragraph 14 of the National Audit Office report Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms, HC1174, Session 2005-06, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993; [279056]
(4) with reference to paragraphs 3.35 to 3.39 of the National Audit Office report Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms, HC1174, Session 2005-06, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993. [279057]
Jonathan Shaw: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to my right hon. Friend with the information requested.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to figures 16 and 18 in the National Audit Office report, Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms published on 30 June 2006, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993. [279053]; and
How many cases the Child Support Agency has adjudicated that money was (a) owed and (b) not owed by the non-resident parent to the parent with care in each year since 1993. [279054]; and
With reference to paragraph 14 of the National Audit Office report Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms published on 30 June 2006, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993. [279056]; and
With reference to paragraphs 3.35 to 3.39 of the National Audit Office report Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms published on 30 June 2006, if she will provide the same information for each year since 1993. [279057]; and
With reference to figure 11 in the National Audit Office report Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms published on 30 June 2006, what the figures were for the three types of case in each month since 1993. [279117]; and
With reference to figure 12 in the National Audit Office report, Child Support Agency - Implementation of the Child Support Reforms published on 30 June 2006, if she will provide the same information in tabulated form for each year since 1993. [279118]; and
How many cases registered with the Child Support Agency were (a) found and (b) projected to contain maintenance calculation errors in each year since 1993. [279119].
The Child Support Agency routinely publishes the full range of available statistical information in its Quarterly Summary of Statistics, the latest copy of which is available in the House of Commons library or online at:
The information that you have requested in your seven parliamentary questions set out above, which relate, in the main to the 2006 National Audit Office Report is routinely published in this statistical summary. The tables within this statistical summary which relate to your questions are set out below; however information is not always available to 1993 and information relating to the clerical caseload is also not always available in these tables.
It should also be noted that in the three years since the National Audit Office report was published in June 2006, many changes have been made to the way in which the Agency monitors and reports its performance. In particular the focus has changed from monitoring cash and case compliance, which relate only to cases with a collection schedule in place had not been helpful, to refocus on the real purpose of the Agency; collecting money for children. We now report the amount of maintenance collected, the number of children benefiting from that maintenance, the percentage of cases which should benefit who do so and the calculation of maintenance for applications.
In question 279053 you asked for an update of table 16 of the National Audit Office report, which provides information on case compliance, cash compliance, last decision accuracy and arrears collected as a percentage of arrears accrued. The latest case compliance figures from November 2005 only, are available in table 7.1 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics. The tables relating to both cash compliance and arrears collected as a percentage of arrears accrued have been suspended from the Quarterly Summary of Statistics. Full reasons for this are set out in the notes to tables 11 and 12. Information on last decision accuracy is available in from March 2004 in table 17.
You also asked for an update of table 18 of the National Audit Office report, which provides information on enforcement action taken by the Agency. A full updated time series is available in table 21 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics.
The information you requested in question 279054 is published in tables 2.2 and 2.3 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics and gives the number of current scheme cases cleared each month by the Agency since 2003 and how many of these were initially assessed as owing and not owing money. This is information is not available for old scheme cases. Table 6 also gives a breakdown of the number of cases in any given month and the volumes that are assessed as nil liability as well as those positively assessed. This information is available for both schemes from November 1995.
In question 279056 you asked for an update of paragraph 14 of the National Audit Office, which report provides information on uncleared applications, applications received and applications cleared. The opening summary table of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics provides information on the volume of uncleared current scheme applications which includes clerical performance from March 2007 only. Table 2.1 sets out a time series from 2003 of uncleared applications across both statutory maintenance schemes as well as applications and clearances which excludes clerical performance.
In question 279057 you asked for an update of paragraphs 3.35 to 3.39 of the National Audit Office report, which provides information on the number of cases with a positive liability and breaks these down into those that pay maintenance, those yet to pay maintenance as well as further breakdowns detailing maintenance direct cases and assessed not charging cases.
Table 6 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics gives information on the case status of all cases with a maintenance assessment/calculation, while table 7,1 gives a breakdown of all cases where the Agency has requested maintenance and in how many cases maintenance was received. Table 7.2 gives information on the number of cases where maintenance was collected or arranged as well as the number of cases with a liability to pay maintenance. The information is available from November 1995.
In question 279117 you asked for an update of figure 11 of the National Audit Office report gives information on the intake of current scheme applications, current scheme clearances and the volume of old scheme uncleared cases. This information is available in table 2.1 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics from 2003 only.
In question 279118 you asked for an update of figure 12 of the National Audit Office report, which gives the percentage of cases in age bands of current scheme uncleared applications at clearance and age of uncleared current scheme applications. A full time series is available in tables 4 and 5 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics. As this is current scheme only, data is only available from 2003.
Finally, in question 279119 you asked for information relating to errors in maintenance calculation; table 17 of the Quarterly Summary of Statistics gives information on the accuracy of maintenance decisions and how many were accurate to within a penny. This information is based on a sampling exercise and is available from March 2004.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |