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IT Systems in development for use within last five years Reason for development of IT Systems How much has been spent on development of IT Systems IT Systems that have been implemented IT Systems terminated prior to implementation IT Systems terminated pos t implementation

National identity Scheme-IPS element

Delivery of the Next Generation Passport and ID Services

£4.945 billion planned total spend ( including IT Systems, IT enabled Business Transformation and operating costs.) Till 2013.

Programme is on Schedule, with implementation phases from end 2009 to 2013.

n/a

n/a

EPA2 project

Upgrade online passport application process in 2006

£10.8 million capital and £1.9 million resource

Terminated prior to implementation 6 May 2007.

n/a

Interview Office Network

IT Systems to support interview of first time passport applicants

£13.2 million Planned Total

Core IT system called ABIOS. Network Infrastructure to 68 ION offices, integration to existing Passport Processing system

n/a

n/a

Digitisation of Vital Events

Digitisation of General Register Office registration records

£8.33 million total project cost

Digitisation of approx 50 per cent. of registration records. Project now closed and a new project is being set-up to complete the digitisation work and to deliver an integrated technology suite. Records digitised in the DoVE project are currently being used by GRO for the production of certificates.

n/a

n/a

Registration On-Line

General Register Office System for recording birth, death, civil partnership and marriage registrations-used by GRO and Local Authorities.

£17.6 million planned capital and set-up costs (projected through to 2011)

The RON system has been rolled-out to all local authorities in England and Wales for civil partnerships, births and deaths. The marriage roll-out will commence in November 2009.

n/a

n/a

Identity Cards for Foreign Nationals

Infrastructure required to implement identity cards for foreign nationals, building on existing systems wherever possible

£13.2 million-Planned total ongoing scheme

November 2008

n/a

n/a

Immigration Casework (ICW)

Enable improvements to processing of immigration casework: specifically Improved efficiency Improve quality and consistency of decisions Improve the service provided Implement more flexible IT systems

Programme Spend to date: £55 million.

The first pilot releases went live on 31 March 2009 and 3 August 2009 (as planned) further releases (three per annum) are planned until 2014-15

n/a

n/a

Agreed Programme Spend by end of 2015-16: £370 million.

Points Based System (PBS)

PBS is a simplified one-stop migration process for those who wish to work, train or study in the UK. Prospective migrants are judged using objective criteria to ensure consistency.

£39.8 million-Planned total to 2010

July 2009, next release is due October 2009. Final release scheduled for February 2010

n/a

n/a

e-Borders

E-Borders enables the UK Border Agency to check people before they reach the UK..

The planned cost to Government is £1.2 billion between financial years 2007-08 and 2017-18

Project IRIS, a pilot biometric automated barrier entry system for pre-registered passengers at selected ports in the UK was piloted from 20 June 2005 to May 2006. IRIS was transferred to operational business in July 2007.

n/a

n/a

E-Borders protects the public, improving the security, efficiency and effectiveness of border controls by enabling us to target criminals and illegal immigrants

Project Semaphore, an operational prototype for the main e-Borders Programme which was transferred to operational business in April 2008.

The Joint Border Operations Centre (JBOC) went live in January 2005, as the operational hub of Project Semaphore. Responsibility for the operation of the JBOC was transferred to Intelligence and National Operations Command on 1 June 2008, but remains closely aligned to the UK's e-Borders programme. It continues to inform the design and development of e-Borders and to deliver operational benefits to stakeholders.

SBS Programme

SBS built on the original ERP implementation programme to further enhance both the functionality and breadth of the Finance, HR and Procurement services in the Home Office for 23,000 users.

£35.9 million total project cost till 2011

Expanded and enhanced enterprise resource planning (ERP) functionality, implemented in progressive releases between May 2008 and April 2009.

n/a

n/a

Vetting and Barring Scheme

Modifications to the IT systems of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) to support the vetting and barring scheme, established by the safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. New casework management systems.

£22.8 million capital and set up costs planned over five years £20.3 million operational costs over five years.

April 2009

n/a

n/a

£15.1 million expenditure to March 2009. Implementation is current and ongoing for these systems

Next Generation IST Transformation Programme (NGISTT)

To assist the Home Office Group to deliver its objectives by giving businesses the shared 1ST infrastructure and services they need to work together in the most productive and cost effective way and to safeguard their information assets.

Spend to date is £3.12 million.

n/a

n/a

Planned investment (Extend and Blend) is £86 million. Future programme spend is yet to be determined.

Departmental Postal Services

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which companies are under contract to his Department to provide mail services; and when each such contract expires. [296086]

Mr. Woolas: General mail services used by the Home Department are via the Royal Mail and the Government Car and Despatch Agency.

Secure mail services for the Identity and Passport Service are contracted to DX Secure Mail Services. The contract expires in July 2010.

Mail services for the Criminal Records Bureau are provided under the PPP Agreement for the Disclosure processing service with Capita Business Services which expires on 11 March 2012.

The Department does not hold central courier contracts nor is information held centrally on all the couriers it uses. Services for TNT are contracted through the OGC framework for courier services, which expires in August 2012. Other firms which have been used by the Department or its agencies either regularly or from time to time include:


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Departmental Public Expenditure

Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to implement the efficiency recommendations of the Operational Efficiency programme relating to his Department; and what training is available to (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department in respect of the delivery of value for money savings. [296006]

Mr. Woolas: The Home Office is implementing the Operational Efficiency programme (OEP) as part of the Department's mainstream Value for Money programme. The Department has a strong record of delivery against value for money targets demonstrating its sustained, long term commitment to this work.

The Home Secretary has taken upon himself, the role of the Department's value for money Minister. By the end of 2007-08, the Department achieved gains worth £2,855m per annum of which £1,552 million per annum was cashable. Following the publication of the OEP the Department has taken steps to benchmark back office activities, as part of its renewed focus on securing maximum cost-effectiveness in both direct and indirect costs.


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A wide range of learning and development opportunities are available across the Department for officials and Ministers, many of which are focused on delivering value for money in Home Office activities. This includes specific value for money training for members for the senior civil service as part of the wider finance improvement strategy that the Public Account Committee celebrated recently (HoC 640).

Departmental Telephone Services

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider the merits of securing accreditation of his Department's helplines to the Helplines Association's quality standard; and if he will make a statement. [295722]

Mr. Woolas: The Home Office Department has already rationalised many of its helplines and are moving to ensure that call costs to its helplines are free or are kept to a minimum. The Department seeks to align its telephony services to the guidance and rules set out by Ofcom, the communications regulator which answers to Parliament but is independent of Government. Ofcom is tasked with making sure that people in the UK get the best from their communications services and has a general duty to further the interests of citizens and of consumers.

We also work closely with the Central Office of Information (COI) which is the Government's centre of excellence for marketing and communications to ensure our telephone services are in line with industry standards and are aligned to the quality and service standards of other Government Departments.

We will continue to seek ways to improve our telephony services and will consider the merits of the Helpline Association's standards as well as other associations or bodies to ensure we strive to deliver a communications service (including telephony) that meets the public need.

Detainees

Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were held in each immigration removal centre in 2008-09. [295629]

Mr. Woolas: The requested information is not available; the Home Office has however published for the first time in August 2009 the number of people entering each removal centre in the UK solely under Immigration Act powers in Q1 and Q2 2009. This information will be published quarterly in the future; however data for earlier years will remain unavailable. This information is available in table 8a and 8b of the Control of Immigration Quarterly Statistical Summary United Kingdom publication available at:

and from the Library of the House.

National Statistics on how many people are detained on a quarterly snapshot basis by place of detention is available in table 9 of the above publication.

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