| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
15 Oct 2009 : Column 1060W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what categories of expenditure are covered by the neighbourhood crime and justice grants funding; how many neighbourhood crime and justice co-ordinators are funded by the grant; what the average salary cost of a neighbourhood crime and justice co-ordinator is; what the official duties of neighbourhood crime and justice co-ordinators are; and what the average number of contracted hours of such co-ordinators are. [292420]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Home Office expenditure covers funding for the employment of Neighbourhood Crime and Justice (NCJ) coordinators and supplementary spend against three evidence-based priorities to improve public confidence in how crime is tackled and justice delivered. These priorities are to
raise awareness and understanding of the public's entitlements from the police and other criminal justice agencies;
ensure that public services are taking action on the crime and antisocial behaviour issues that are local priorities for the public;
help demonstrate to the public that there are consequences for those who break the law.
The NCJ grant provides funding for co-ordinators in 60 NCJ "Pioneer Areas". These are 60 Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRP) which were invited to become Pioneer Areas based on a range of indicators, including public perceptions of antisocial behaviour and confidence in local services, deprivation levels and population size.
The specific official duties and terms and conditions of NCJ co-ordinators will vary according to the prevailing arrangements within each Pioneer Area. Information on average salaries and hours is not held centrally. They are directly employed by, and therefore responsible to, one of the organisations that comprise the local CDRP, typically the local authority.
Police: Football
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions he has had with police forces on the effects of the compensation paid to football supporters on the application of section 27 of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006. [291593]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Home Office has had discussions on the use of section 27 powers in policing football operations with the ACPO lead on football matters. This provision is one of a number of operational tools available to chief police officers. This is a matter for local chief officers. Section 27 of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 makes clear that the powers should be used in a proportionate and appropriate manner.
Racial Hatred: Football
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reports of racist abuse relating to football matches police forces in England and Wales received during the 2008-09 football season. [292042]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Levels of racist behaviour in connection with football matches in England and Wales is extremely low. During the football season 2008-09, over 36 million spectators attended over 3,100 competitive and friendly matches. In total, local police recorded 64 incidents of "hate crime" inside and outside of football stadia. This categorisation of hate crime includes racist and homophobic chanting or behaviour, incidents involving ethnic minority fans or local residents, the distribution of racist material, and other racist or extreme right wing activity. The incidents recorded usually involved individuals as opposed to groups of fans.
A great deal has been achieved over the past decade in terms of preventing and tackling racism in connection with football. All of the agencies involved in football safety and security, including supporter groups, are committed to working together to combat hate crime, including racism. The law makes clear that the courts should consider imposing a football banning order on any person convicted of racist chanting or other racially aggravated offences committed in connection with football.
Road Traffic Offences: M4
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions have been brought for illegal use of the M4 bus and taxi lane since the lane was established. [293133]
Mr. Alan Campbell:
This information is not collected centrally. Court proceedings data held by the Ministry of Justice do not separately identify offences of illegal
use of bus lanes (under Section 36 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and Regulation 10 of the Traffic Signs and General Directions Regulations 2002) from other offences of neglect of traffic directions. Nor is the location of such offences recorded.
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are in place to monitor compliance with the terms of use of the M4 bus lane. [293134]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The police can deal with illegal use of the bus lane by giving an oral or written warning, the issue of a £60 fixed penalty notice or by proceeding to prosecution. Metropolitan Police traffic officers are regularly deployed on that section of the M4 which includes the bus lane. Any police officer who witnesses an offence taking place there will take whatever action is appropriate in the circumstances. In addition, the Metropolitan Police are working in partnership with the Highways Agency and Transport for London to devise medium and long term solutions in relation to the lane's use and safety.
Scotland
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department plans to make a submission to the Scottish Executive's National Conversation consultation on Scotland's constitutional future. [288957]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office has not submitted evidence to the Scottish Government's National Conversation.
The Commission on Scottish Devolution was established by majority vote in the Scottish Parliament and with the full support of the UK Government. UK Departments submitted evidence to the Commission during its first phase of evidence gathering.
The commission recently published its final report, which can be found at:
A steering group has been established under the chairmanship of the Secretary of State for Scotland to help the UK Government and the Scottish Parliament plan how to take forward the Calman recommendations and deliver stronger devolution within a stronger United Kingdom.
Students: Immigration
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many students from colleges not on the Register of Education and Training Providers have applied for permanent residence in the UK in each of the last five years. [292796]
Mr. Woolas: The student category does not lead to settlement and information is not available as to how many migrants who have been granted settlement were previously here as students.
Stun Guns: Children
Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what safety assessment his Department has conducted on the use of taser guns and attenuating energy projectiles in relation to children; and if he will make a statement. [291937]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The Home Office Scientific Development Branch have produced three reports evaluating Taser devices. We have also submitted the use of Taser according to Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) guidance to an independent group of medical advisers-DOMILL (Defence Scientific Advisory Council (DSAC) Sub-committee on the Medical Implications of Less-lethal Weapons).
DOMILL has issued five statements on the medical implications of the use of the Taser. Its view is that the risk of death or serious injury from the use of Tasers within ACPO Guidance and Policy is very low. The fourth DOMILL statement identified children and adults of smaller stature as being at potentially greater risk from the cardiac effects of Taser currents than normal adults of average or large stature. The ACPO guidance to officers highlights this point.
ACPO guidance on the use of Attenuated Energy Projectile (AEP) states that every effort should be made to ensure that children are not placed at risk by the firing of baton rounds in public order situations. The guidance is also clear that deployment of AEP in a public order situation must be restricted to use against clearly identified individuals who are presenting a threat which must be countered.
Medical evaluation of the AEP by DOMILL concluded that the risk of serious and life-threatening injury to the head is less than that from its predecessor the L21A1 Baton Round, which already had a low risk of such injury.
UK Border Agency: Manpower
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigration officers his Department employs overseas to screen passengers of inbound flights to the United Kingdom at airports (a) in and (b) outside the EU. [292932]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 October 2009]: The UK Border Agency's Risk and Liaison Overseas Network (RALON) currently employs 98 staff designated as Immigration Liaison Managers and Officers overseas, 14 within the EU and 84 in non-EU locations.
One of RALON's core functions is to support carriers at airports to identify those without correct documentation from seeking to travel to the UK.
RALON staff only operate at airports in an advisory capacity, achieved through the provision of training and expertise to airlines in UK passport and visa requirements and forgery awareness, to assist them to prevent inadequately documented passengers from boarding. RALON staff have no legal powers overseas and the decision on whether to carry a passenger is always made by the airline.
Communities and Local Government
Allotments
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what obligations local authorities have to provide sufficient allotment sites to meet demand. [292706]
Barbara Follett: Under the Smallholdings and Allotments Act 1908 there is a duty on local authorities to provide allotments where they perceive a demand for them in their area. Where an allotments authority is of the opinion that there is a demand for allotments in its area, section 23 of the 1908 Act puts the authority under a duty to provide a sufficient number of allotments and to let them to persons residing in its area who want them.
Legislation does not lay down minimum standards or a required nature or extent of allotment garden provision. The Government consider it appropriate that each local authority should decide for itself what proportion of its resources to devote to these purposes. Allotment authorities therefore have room to exercise discretion about the level of and time scale for provision of allotment gardens and facilities on site.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the average waiting time for an applicant to secure a local authority allotment. [292730]
Barbara Follett: Local authorities are responsible for keeping and managing waiting lists for allotments they provide. Government do not require local authorities to provide data on the average waiting time for an applicant to secure a local authority allotment.
Audit Commission: Pay
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions (a) Ministers in his Department and (b) members of his Department's board have had with the Chief Executive of the Audit Commission on the consolidated pay rise for the Commission's senior management that followed the cancellation in June of the optional bonus scheme; and if he will make a statement. [292181]
Barbara Follett: There have been no such discussions between CLG Ministers or CLG board members.
Building Regulations: Energy
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many contraventions of Part L of the Building Regulations have taken place in each year since 2000; how many of them were resolved before project completion; and how many of the contraventions which were left unresolved before project completion resulted in prosecution. [292140]
Mr. Malik: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 1 September 2009, Official Report, column 1830W.
Council Housing
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new council homes have been built in England in each year since 1997; and at what cost in each such year. [293141]
Mr. Ian Austin: Figures showing how many new council (local authority) homes have been built in England in each year since 1997 were released in Live Table 244 on the CLG website in August 2009. These include total house building completions by tenure, including local authority completions at:
Estimates on the cost of local authority house building activity is not held centrally.
Council Tax: Appeals
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, columns 308-9W, on council tax: appeals, what information his Department holds on the (a) number of council tax appeals decided and (b) decisions relating to each such case in (a) 2004-05 and (b) 2005-06. [292976]
Barbara Follett: The Valuation Tribunal Service (VTS) does not hold information on the number of council tax appeals decided in 2004-05 or 2005-06. There are no statistical data for those decisions and to provide the data would incur disproportionate cost, but all the individual decisions are available for inspection in the VTS' offices and many of the decisions appear on their website:
Councillors
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, columns 309-11W, on councillors, what mechanisms he uses to assess the implementation by political parties of the recommendations of the Councillors Commission report. [292975]
Barbara Follett: The Government are not monitoring the political parties' implementation of the recommendations of the Councillors Commission report. We are however supporting the Leadership Centre for Local Government to work with the political parties on the "21st Century Councillors" programme and the national roll-out of the "Be A Councillor" campaign, both of which take forward the Councillors Commission agenda.
Departmental Freedom of Information
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's policy is on sending a written acknowledgement, including a case reference number, on receipt of a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [292882]
Barbara Follett: It is the policy of this Department to send acknowledgements of all Freedom of Information requests received within seven days of receipt in the Department except where it is possible to provide a substantive response within that time or shortly thereafter.
Departmental Furniture
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 6 May 2009, Official Report, column 234W, on departmental furniture, which (a) offices and (b) individuals received each (i) Dean and (ii) Hay model of the Herman Miller chair. [292987]
Barbara Follett: Communities and Local Government purchased the Dean and Hay model of chairs for use in general areas of Eland House, not for individual staff. These chairs were purchased through Herman Miller, but manufactured by Orangebox.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 6 May 2009, Official Report, column 234W, on departmental furniture, how many Herman Miller chairs were ordered by the Department in 2008-09; and what the (a) model and (b) cost, including value added tax, was of each. [292988]
Barbara Follett: Communities and Local Government did not order any chairs manufactured by Herman Miller in 2008-09.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |