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20 Oct 2009 : Column 1367W—continued


20 Oct 2009 : Column 1368W

Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department plans to reduce levels of training of Territorial Army recruits. [293135]

Bill Rammell [holding answer 15 October 2009]: This year is very challenging in resource terms, and success in Afghanistan must take priority. As such, the Army has directed that the regular forces and the reserves must focus available resources on supporting the ongoing campaign in Afghanistan, which means reducing activity levels elsewhere. All TA activity not directly in support of operations will therefore be stopped or reduced for the remainder of this financial year. This does not affect TA soldiers who have been or will be earmarked for deployment to Afghanistan. Nor does it affect initial training for Territorial Army recruits.

Justice

Criminal Justice System

Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people in each age group entered the criminal justice system for the first time in each year since 1997. [294204]

Claire Ward: The requested figures are shown in the following table. Figures before 2000 have not been included as the available data are known to be incomplete before that date.

These figures have been drawn from the police's administrative IT system, the police national computer (PNC), which, as with any large scale recording system, is subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. The figures are provisional and subject to change as more information is recorded by the police.

First time entrants( 1) to the criminal justice system, England and Wales, by age group, 2000-01 to 2008-09
Number of offenders
Age group

10-14 15-17 18-20 21-24 25-29 30-39 40-49 50 and over Total

2000-01

41,600

48,200

46,500

33,200

27,600

35,900

20,900

16,400

270,500

2001-02

40,600

48,400

43,900

34,000

27,400

37,300

22,000

16,600

270,100

2002-03

36,100

47,200

42,800

36,700

28,700

39,800

23,300

17,800

272,500

2003-04

38,300

49,800

42,800

38,300

29,100

42,000

25,400

18,800

284,600

2004-05

42,900

52,800

39,600

35,800

29,200

42,800

26,800

19,900

289,800

2005-06

48,700

58,400

42,500

39,600

33,300

47,600

31,200

22,500

323,800

2006-07

50,200

59,600

42,900

39,700

34,400

48,100

32,200

23,000

330,200

2007-08

44,400

56,000

42,000

39,300

34,700

47,500

32,900

24,000

320,700

2008-09(2)

n/a

n/a

38,000

36,300

33,100

43,600

30,300

22,700

n/a

(1) An offender is considered to be a first time entrant to the criminal justice system on the first occasion they receive either a conviction, a caution, a reprimand or a final warning as recorded on the police national computer. (2) Figures for juvenile first time entrants for 2008-09 for England will be published in November by the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Cybercrime

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he plans to take to prevent people in prison issuing threats through the internet. [293655]

Maria Eagle: Prisoners are allowed only supervised access to the internet for educational purposes and this is limited to specific learning sites.

Prisons take a variety of measures to prevent unauthorised access to the internet by prisoners which will be mainly through use of illegally acquired mobile phones. The Government are determined to address the risks that mobile phones in prison present to security and to the safety of the public. This is a significant challenge given the advances in technology and our commitment to running decent and effective regimes. We have, though, made significant progress in implementing a strategy to tackle illicit mobile phones. This includes: minimising the number of mobile phones entering prisons; finding mobile phones that are smuggled into prisons; disrupting mobile phones that cannot be found.

In addition, the National Offender Management Service has an agreement with one of the leading internet social
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networking sites to ensure that any inappropriate material that may be posted by prisoners is removed as soon as it can be identified.

Employment and Support Allowance: Appeals

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how long on average it has taken for appeals against refusal of employment and support allowance to be heard in the last 12 months. [293636]

Bridget Prentice: The first tier tribunal-social security and child support target is to bring 75 per cent. of appeals to hearing within 14 weeks of receipt. It has taken an average of 10.22 weeks for appeals against the refusal of employment and support allowance to be heard during the period 1 October 2008 and 30 September 2009. This time is calculated from receipt of the appeal by the Tribunals Service to hearing by the first tier tribunal-social security and child support. The Tribunals Service is unable to provide information on the length of time between the appeal being lodged with the Department for Work and Pensions and it being submitted to the Tribunals Service.

General Elections

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of costs to local authorities of administrating a general election poll are refunded by central Government grant. [294370]

Mr. Wills: Returning officers are entitled to recover their charges in respect of services rendered or expenses incurred at parliamentary elections if they were necessarily rendered or incurred for the efficient and effective conduct
20 Oct 2009 : Column 1370W
of the election and they do not exceed the overall maximum recoverable amount specified in an Order made by the Secretary of State. Provision is made for this purpose from the consolidated fund.

Homicide

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many people have pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility in each of the last five years; [294223]

(2) how many people who had pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility were being held in secure accommodation at each location on the latest date for which figures are available. [294225]

Claire Ward: The number of persons who pleaded guilty at the Crown court and were sentenced for manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, in England and Wales, from 2003 to 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following table. These figures include offenders who were given an unrestricted hospital order, a restricted hospital order or an immediate custodial sentence.

The statistics given relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. For example, 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.

Data for 2008 are planned for publication at the end of January 2010.

Persons who pleaded guilty and sentenced at the Crown court for manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, England and Wales, 2003 to 2007( 1, 2)
Offence: Manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility
Statute: Homicide Act 1957, section 2
Sentence breakdown

Pleaded guilty Total sentenced Unrestricted hospital order( 3) Restricted hospital order( 4) Immediate custody Otherwise dealt with

2003

19

19

9

1

9

-

2004

19

19

4

4

8

3

2005

19

19

3

6

8

2

2006

10

10

-

7

2

1

2007

19

19

1

12

6

-

(1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. 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) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Unrestricted hospital order, under the Mental Health Act 1983, section 37(1). (4) Restricted hospital order, under Mental health Act 1983, section 41. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit-Office for Criminal Justice Reform.

Land: Registration

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what consideration he has given to the expansion of the programme of compulsory land registration; and if he will make a statement. [294023]

Mr. Wills: The creation of a comprehensive land register for England and Wales is one of Land Registry's strategic objectives. Over 70 per cent. of England and Wales, including most urban land, is now registered in about 21 million registered titles. The registered area has increased from 45 per cent. in 2004 when data on geographic coverage first became available. This growth is principally attributable to Land Registry's strategy of persuading landowners of the benefits of voluntarily first registration.


20 Oct 2009 : Column 1371W

First registration of unregistered land is compulsory after certain specific trigger events, including, a sale, a first mortgage or a transfer on death. Two new trigger events, the appointment of a new trustee and the partition of land among trust beneficiaries, were added by the Land Registration Act 2002 (Amendment) Order 2008, which came into force on 6 April 2009. There are no plans at present to introduce any additional triggers.

Other potential trigger events and methods of compulsion were examined as part of the preparatory work for the 2008 Order but at that time were considered impracticable, due to their complexity, or inappropriate, because of the nature of the sanctions that would be required.


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