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29 Jun 2009 : Column 108W—continued
British Constitution
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the statement of 10 June 2009, Official Report, columns 795-99, on constitutional renewal, what options for sanctions he plans to propose for hon. Members who breach the proposed statutory code of conduct. [280244]
Barbara Keeley: I have been asked to reply.
Clause 9 of the Parliamentary Standards Bill as published creates new criminal offences relating to claims for allowances and Members' financial interests. The House will also retain its current disciplinary powers in relation to misconduct by Members.
Complaints
Mrs. Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make an assessment of the merits of amending the Data Protection Acts 1998 and 2002 to provide for the immediate deletion of records held by employers of complaints made by them against former employees in circumstances in which such complaints are withdrawn. [282676]
Mr. Wills: All processing of personal data in the UK must be carried out in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). The fifth data protection principle in the DPA requires that personal data are not kept for longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. This principle would apply to any personal data contained in complaints against former employees, including those that are later withdrawn. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is responsible for investigating and enforcing compliance with the DPA. Any concerns that a data controller is not complying with the Act may be referred to the ICO.
Criminal Injuries Compensation
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many awards the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority made to individuals with a criminal record in each year for which figures are available. [281950]
Mr. Straw: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority does not maintain records for the number of awards made to individuals with a criminal record. However, the numbers of awards reduced (under Paragraphs 13 and 15 of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (CICS)) because of criminal convictions are as follows:
| Number of awards reduced because of applicant’s/deceased’s criminal convictions | Total number of awards made under the CICS | |
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many awards the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority made to individuals injured while trying to prevent a crime or while helping a police officer catch a suspected criminal in each year for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of such awards was in each such year. [281951]
Mr. Straw: This information is not recorded centrally by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. However, figures detailing the numbers of awards made (excluding those to police officers) where the applicant took an exceptional risk and was injured in attempting to apprehend an offender, and the total monetary value of these awards, are as follows:
| Cases where applicant attempted to apprehend an offender( 1) | ||
| Number | Value of cases (£) | |
| (1 )Exceptional risk. | ||
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many awards the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority made in each year for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of those awards was in each such year. [281953]
Mr. Straw: The numbers of awards made by CICA between 1996-97 and 2008-09, and the monetary value of those awards in each of these years, are given in the following table:
| Total n umber of a wards made under the CICS | Value of c ases (£) | |
Departmental Billing
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the Answer of 15 June 2009, Official Report, column 62W, on departmental billing, how much his Department’s non-departmental public bodies paid in interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 in the last three years. [282329]
Mr. Wills:
None of the non-departmental public bodies sponsored by the Ministry of Justice paid any interest to suppliers under the late Payment of Commercial Debt (Interest) Act 1998 in the last three years, (from April 2006 through to March 2009). Although the Ministry of Justice was only formed in May 2007 the figures provided for the three-year period requested are correct, as any payments made under this Act must be disclosed in the audited annual report and accounts of
each individual body. No such disclosures were made. Copies of these documents are held in the Library of the House of Commons.
Departmental Catering
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, Official Report, column 76W, on departmental catering, what the level of subsidy for provision of food and drink to the Ministry of Justice headquarters estate was in financial year 2007-08. [278266]
Mr. Straw: The subsidy for the provision of food and drink to the Ministry of Justice estate was £180,000 for the financial year 2007-08.
Departmental Data Protection
James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many officials in (a) his Department and (b) its agencies have been (i) disciplined and (ii) dismissed for (A) breaches of data protection requirements and (B) inappropriate use of personal or sensitive data in the last 12 months. [278738]
Mr. Straw: Ministry of Justice (MO J) central records for the financial year 2008-09, show that no officials have been disciplined or dismissed for breaches of data protection requirements or inappropriate use of personal or sensitive data.
Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many breaches of information security there have been at (a) his Department and its predecessor and (b) its agencies in the last five years. [281089]
Mr. Straw: The total number of centrally recorded information security breaches/incidents occurring within the last five reporting years for the Department (created May 2007) and its predecessor (the Department for Constitutional Affairs) are as follows:
| MOJ/DCA | Number |
These totals include both IT and general information breaches/incidents. For the years prior to 2008-09, these figures include agencies and NDPBs, and to obtain a breakdown would involve disproportionate cost.
Our records now enable us to break down the 2008-09 figure, which comprises 394 information breaches and 922 IT incidents. The 394 includes the following agency breakdown:
| Number | |
NOMS was formerly part of the Home Office, and figures for incidents prior to May 2007 are held by the Home Office.
My Department and its agencies report all significant personal data security breaches to the Cabinet Office and the ICO. Information on personal data security breaches are published on an annual basis in the Department’s annual resource accounts as was announced in the Data Handling Review published on 25 June 2008.
Additionally, all significant control weaknesses including other significant security breaches are included in the Statement of Internal Control which is published within the annual resource accounts. Only two of the information incidents in 2008-09 were assessed to be significant and nine in 2007-08.
Although, the last two reporting years has seen a 43 per cent. increase in reported information and IT security related breaches/incidents, much of this is the result of the implementation of a robust information assurance programme. This has included the need for all areas to apply procedures for reporting information security incidents, including the identification and investigation of the departure, however minor, from all security procedures. The result is an evidently improving information security management system.
Where incidents involve the inadvertent disclosure of personal data these now include the requirement to involve managers and senior civil servants within an hour of any potential disclosure being identified. The circumstances surrounding each potential incident are investigated and where appropriate disciplinary action is taken.
Departmental Publications
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much it cost to produce each of his Department's publications in each of the last three years. [280769]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice and its executive agencies produce a wide range of internal and external publications each year, including annual reports and consultation papers, public information material for the public and ministerial vision statements. External publications can be found on the Ministry's website at:
It is not possible to identify expenditure on all types of publications without incurring disproportionate cost as this would involve examination of a large number of transactions across a range of accounting categories. The following figures, though not comprehensive, reflect the majority of expenditure incurred by the Ministry and its executive agencies on external publications:
| £ | |
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